Six Unforgettable Moments at WOODZ Archive. 1”World Tour Los Angeles Concert

Photo: EDAM Entertainment/Nathan Hong

It’s been two and a half years since WOODZ’s last world tour in late 2023, his first time taking the stage in Los Angeles. At the time, the K-Rock/K-Pop/Genre-bending soloist was only a few months away from his compulsory military enlistment period. At the historic Dolby Theater, WOODZ returns in earnest, now with record after record under his belt (his 2023 B-Side “Drowning” became a veritable domestic hit during his military enlistment, breaking the record for most consecutive weeks in the Melon Top 10 Chart History at 77 weeks.) 

And now, two and half years later, WOODZ embarks on his world tour Archive. 1, taking to the historic Dolby Theater Stage in Hollywood on July 25th for the first performance of the North American leg. Here are six unforgettable moments that made it a true night to remember:

The Crowd!

Packed with MOODZ, the word for WOODZ fanbase, the audience (and the lengthy merchandise line) abounded with lightsticks, photocards, beaded bracelet freebies–all the typical hallmarks of fans of K-Pop, which I often see at events like these. But I couldn’t help but notice scattered around me were audience members beyond the usual K-Pop crowd; I bumped into a friend, who quickly introduced me to her mom, a Korean-American woman who quickly shared her love for “Drowning” and greeted me with a smile. Mixed into the seats around me were rock devotees, moshing, sticking their hands up with devil horns high. And, it’s not to say that the group to my right didn’t enjoy the concert, they did, dancing, singing, hands held high, but suddenly, when “Drowning” came on, they were hugging, almost on their knees in triumph, singing the lyrics with their full chest. It’s only fitting that Los Angeles, the region with the largest portion of ethnic Koreans outside of South Korea, has an audience as mixed and vibrant as WOODZ’s music, testifying to his domestic and diasporic success, the support of his fans, and the broad and niche allure of his music. It seems that, in this way, WOODZ’s genre-breaking is working, appealing across boundaries.

Rock ‘N Roll Magic

When I first reviewed Archive. 1 (the album) during its promotional period (a true ten out of ten album if there ever was one), the album was a striking rock n’ roll microcosm, with hints of all the greats: Oasis, Muse, 70s country rock, shoegaze. The resulting live performance celebrated each and every element of Rock, both from Archive. 1 and prior releases, starting with gritty, pentatonic “Bloodline” as the high energy opener, revving through “Hijack,” soloing his way through sultry “Feel Like,”  string-bending through “The Spark,” lilting and soaring in “To My January,” hair metal shouting in “Who Knows” and “Stray,” his seemingly unending lung capacity belting his way through “Amnesia” or maybe, “I’ll Never Love Again,” the list goes on and on. 

The setlist held each song in full, with storied moments throughout: a time to jump, a time to headband, and time to cry, a time to dream. Each track crafted with care, the music breadth of the stage resounded in a breakneck, fast-paced journey through each beat of WOODZ’s discography onstage. Taken in full, the concert was as much performance as it was tribute to the many varying elements that makes WOODZ the incredible performer that he certainly is: onstage, living, breathing, and singing. Rock on, WOODZ.

The Band!

As much as WOODZ soars as a soloist with vintage telecaster in hand, the support of his band: Seo Juyoung on drums, Yang Kyungah on bass, Hoho (Kim Hohyun) on guitar, and Kim Dongmin on keyboard, underscored each moment of performance. Each musician shone onstage, each getting the chance to solo, shine, and support the set, WOODZ stepping back to showcase them through key performance moments across the full set. 

Let’s Talk About Drowning

“It’s a little bit emotional, so if you know it, please sing with me,” WOODZ remarks as he leads into his melancholic leg of the setlist, a quartet of tearjerkers: “Glass,” “I’ll Never Love Again,” “Drowning,” and “Cinema.” 

It’s only natural that “Drowning” got the loudest sing-along screams from the audience in raw emotion: “I can’t breathe!” the entire theater of 3,000 voices screamed in unison. Those in the know with WOODZ’s career run know that as “Drowning” just began to gain momentum as a hit, one of its first initial recognitions came from viral online videos of crowds screaming the bridge during his prior tour. Both a hit song and a live performance phenomenon, I saw the audience around me jump out of their seats, hugging and singing with their full chests. It was this full portion of the set that showcased both the emotional depth and sheer performance capacity behind WOODZ’s artistry the most. The outro of glass, the raw belting of “I’ll Never Love Again” and the melodrama of “Cinema” combined with “Drowning”’s triumph into that unique type of catharsis that only live music can bring. 

Human Extinction

The title track of the Archive. 1 album: the live performance of “Human Extinction” dripped with despair, grit, and existentialism, with visuals to match. While the majority of the show was marked with ambient lighting and the occasional projected backdrop, the production team went all in with “Human Extinction” flashing lyrical graphics up behind WOODZ to underscore the song: “the sin of my existence once again” or perhaps “Meant to disappear - what now?,” before it all shatters into glitching pixels and binary code with the soaring arpeggios and belted high notes of the chorus, flickering into extinction. While “Drowning” may have offered the emotional catharsis of the night, “Human Extinction” offered up its own musical transcendence, melding the grittier, edgier moments of the night with WOODZ raw, powerhouse vocals.

A Night To Remember

WOODZ kept his commentary brief before diving into each track, with one exception: a cover of Justin Bieber’s “Yukon” prepared specifically for the night. The concert ran at breakneck speed, coming in at about an hour and a half, never pausing between songs, and allowing only a few minutes between the closer and the encore to change T-shirts. Every second spent onstage was clearly treated as a second meant for music, and WOODZ delivered just that, with total conviction. And as the night closed out its encore with crowd-pleaser “BUMP BUMP” and its vivacious key change, all jumping and fun, WOODZ stepped offstage, ready to take the rest of North America by storm.