This month, Korean band W24 took to the stage in three U.K. cities- Manchester, London, and Bristol- on their Born again tour in Europe. This tour comes just ten months after they performed here in October 2022, with their W24 in U.K. tour, the second of two U.K. 2022 tours for the band. On August 19, The Kraze attended W24’s show at London’s The Garage venue, watching them play an intimate gig for their sweetly named fandom, EVERY. 

At exactly 7 p.m., W24 appeared on stage, one by one, taking to their designated spots. Jonggil on drums, Yunsoo on guitar, and Howon on vocals. Keyboardist Aaron is currently away doing his mandatory military service but the three remaining members made sure to include him, mentioning him several times throughout the night. They even went as far as changing the lyrics to their song “Missing You J” to “Missing You A,” for Aaron, prompting the crowd to sing that lyric aloud so that it could be recorded and shown to Aaron when they next meet up with him. 

The night was full of a brilliant selection of W24’s tracks, including recent tunes and older hits. They opened the show with one of their newer singles “Drive,” from their latest release Born again, and continued with the song’s rock-pop vibe with the likes of “Breath,” “Under the Tree,” and “Yeah,” and a more jazzy rendition of “점퍼 챙겨 나와 Always Missing You.” They also played two songs that they revealed on Mnet’s band competition show Great Seoul Invasion, last year- “Over the rainbow” (which is also a collaboration with actress-singer Yoon Eunhye) and “RUAH.” Alongside the upbeat songs, W24 also stripped it back with their stunning ballad and slower-pop tracks such as “Songs of Songs,” and “I am down,” from their 2022 EP WHITE ALBUM, before bringing the mood back up with “J♡B=LOVE'' and “Missing You J,” as well as other tracks such as “Solfamiredo,” “Revelations,” and “무수히 Everything is Fine” later on. Not only did W24 perform their own material but the band also performed a breath-taking cover of Lenny Kravitz’s rock classic “ Are You Gonna Go My Way,” which further displayed Yunsoo's incredible guitar skills. Yunsoo is a genuinely talented guitarist, which we saw through many standout moments during the night.

During the crowd interaction moments, Howon mentioned that the band had been prepared for the weather in the U.K. to be wet and miserable (perhaps not those exact words, but we all know what the weather in England is like) but instead, said that it had been sunny from the moment that the band had arrived into the country. Referencing the weather, Howon joked about W24 being the “sunshine of [your] life” but to EVERY, and in particular those who attended this tour, W24 is the ‘sunshine of EVERY’s life!’ One member of the crowd had even been crying from all of the excitement and adrenaline of seeing W24 in front of her, showing the impact this band has on their fans. Howon also mentioned that he’s noticed that U.K. people are “so sweet, so nice, and very gentle” much to the British crowd's amusement, who seemed to disagree with Howon’s description. However, one crowd member fell into Howon’s description of “nice” by gifting him with a UK flag which he kindly accepted and interacted with on stage during multiple song performances.

From watching W24 on Mnet’s band competition program, Great Seoul Invasion, seeing them perform live in Birmingham, last year, to now witnessing them in London, W24 really are a band who get better and better with each performance. All three of the W24 members were sweet, charming, humorous, exceptionally talented, and an all-round delight to watch and listen to perform. They made sure to interact with their fans as much as possible, getting the crowd to participate through singalongs, adlibs, and movements; you could really see the love and appreciation they had for their EVERY'S and vice versa, the love that their fans had for them. With so much talent and likeability from each member, W24 is the K-band to watch right now. So, if you get the chance to see W24 on tour then go, you won’t be disappointed! At the same time, make sure you go and follow them on social media and support their musical journey on all streaming platforms.