[Herald Review] TXT concludes third world tour, opens new chapter

Boy band TXT celebrated the grand finale of its third world tour with three days of concerts in Seoul and returned with a new album.

The quintet held the final performance of “Act: Promise,” the encore concert of its third world tour, which began in May, at KSPO Dome in Seoul on Sunday. Including the encore concerts, TXT completed a total of 31 performances across 17 cities, including major venues like Tokyo Dome, Kyocera Dome Osaka, Vantelin Dome Nagoya in Japan, and Madison Square Garden in New York.

The Sunday concert opened with all five members wearing clocks as they took to the stage. When Yeonjun donned a crown that descended from above, the members threw off their capes and kicked off the performance with “Deja Vu” and “Run Away.”

Since its debut, TXT has crafted a continuous narrative of a boy’s growth in its albums, creating an epic storyline. In keeping with this theme, the group designed the concert to convey a message of moving forward and promising a future together with their fans.

Musically, the concert showcased unique arrangements of their hit songs. “Sugar Rush Ride” was rearranged in a traditional Korean music style, with members dressed in hanbok, while “New Rules” was arranged as a punk rock version and “Puma” was transformed into a hard rock rendition, highlighting TXT’s diverse musical spectrum.

“While there may be unintentional setbacks, we will always overcome them and move forward, focusing only on the people we love, our members, and our fans,” Yeonjun shared during the performance.

In response to calls from their cheering fans, TXT delivered two encores, filling the stage for about three and a half hours.

Additionally, the concert marked the debut performance of their new song “Over The Moon,” released on Monday.

At a press conference before the encore concert to celebrate the release of their 7th mini album "The Star Chapter: Sanctuary," Taehyun described the new album as the most “romantic” one they have released so far.

“The title track ‘Over The Moon’ captures all the charms of TXT -- freshness, dreaminess, intensity and sexiness. Since our debut, we have showcased the story of a boy's growth, depicting moments of growing pains, first love and moments of exhaustion. This album encapsulates the joy of a boy reuniting with someone he has missed,” Taehyun explained.

Huening Kai noted that the choreography, melody, and mood of the new song evoke memories of TXT's earlier tracks and encouraged listeners to pay attention to that aspect.

Soobin shared that all members have grown significantly through the world tour. “I think we’ve all matured during the tour. Performing on such big stages has improved our stage manners, and our singing and dancing have naturally developed as well.”

“We want to be a group that people want to see for a long time, and we hope our songs become those that people continue to listen to for years to come. That is our ultimate goal,” Taehyun concluded.