Originally selling out one concert date in the region for a venue with a capacity of 10,000, Big Bang set on to begin their US 'Alive Galaxy Tour' this weekend with two dates. Even the added date was a near sell-out, proving that Big Bang is much awaited by their fans in the US, followed in nearly every stop by those visiting from other countries.

Being kings of fan service, Big Bang did not disappoint. Every bead of sweat from the performers, every flicker of the glowlights from the audience were key factors for a truly VIP experience for everyone, as Big Bang worked through a repertoire of their most recent hits. The performance they gave for both days would be a testament to the maturity they found after the rough past two years for their team. Newer audiences will not even be able to tell that the band has gone through quite a few tough trials. True to their theme for the concert, Big Bang is alive and intact -- storms and years after.

What is a better way to prove this than begin their concert with the Intro version of " Still Alive," standing inside their capsules. After being released from their 'incubators', Big Bang members G-Dragon, T.O.P, Taeyang, Daesung and Seungri opened their 2+ hours long engagement with "Tonight" and "Hands Up." They then did their customary greetings, before grooving to "Fantastic Baby." After which, they showed off their elaborate stage as they began "How Gee" and "Stupid Liar" while riding scooters and bikes around the stage. Taeyang, Daesung and Seungri then took their role as MCs for a bit, teaching the crowd the steps to "Fantastic Baby," before G-Dragon started with his solo stage.

For his solo, the group's leader, G-Dragon, performed his latest and popular single "Crayon" in full -- a rare performance in their World Tour series. He was then joined by T.O.P. for their duo stage performing "Ppeokigayo"/"Knockout" and "High High" making the audience filled with excitement. Seungri maintained the momentum from the earlier duo stage preceding his solo stage, by sticking to a heartthumping military theme as he performed "Strong Baby" and "What Can I Do."

The group then once again performed together with "Gara Gara Go", "Number 1" and "Cafe." After another MC intermission, they begin their mid-tempo set performing "Bad Boy", "Blue" and "Love Song." Taeyang's solo stage was preceded by the hit song "Monster" and "Feeling." For his solo, Taeyang treated the crowd with his cool vocals and ripped abs performing "Look Only at Me" and "Wedding Dress." Then an angel moved to do his own solo stage, as Daesung, with his powerful vocals flew around the stage during his solo performance of "Wings."

Fortunately, Daesung was already wearing a crisp white shirt, so he just needed to don a blazer on top of it, in time for the group's performance of "Haru Haru." As the five men of Big Bang looked dapper in their suits, they asked the crowd to sing with them one of the hit songs from their earlier days. And the crowd was more than happy to oblige, making it a truly heartwarming moment of connection between the band and their audience. They then attempted to close out the night with "Last Farewell."

As they retreated backstage, the crowd was screaming for an encore. After a short while, they re-emerge to perform "Let Me Hear Your Voice" and "Heaven." As they once again went to go backstage, the curtain doors didn't appear to let them in, leading Big Bang to perform a second encore set with "Bad Boy", "Fantastic Baby", "Feeling" and "Hands Up."

During the encore, Big Bang was found doing a lot of treats to their fans -- with members interacting with fans as closely as possible. A highlight of this particular concert stops was that it happened during the time of T.O.P's birthday and due to that, the fans were celebrating with him -- singing him a song on the 1st day and giving him a cake on the second day. This made the birthday boy really happy.

Fans of Big Bang came away from the concert satisfied -- with the love that the boys were trying very hard to make them feel by constantly reaching out to the crowd. Critics and new listeners found Big Bang entertaining, while also down-to-earth heartwarming. A takeaway from the Alive concert is that Big Bang lives each moment as if it were the last -- giving their all while spreading warmth and love to everyone. That must be the secret to their longevity and continued growth.

Writer/Photographer: Dorothy A