K-pop prides itself on vertiginously high standards in all aspects of production, from its choreography to the carefully curated public images of its stars. So it’s surprising that the European leg of the biggest tour ever by an all-female K-pop act begins a tad late. A bemused American voice apologises for “technical difficulties” over the PA. (Blackpink’s world tour has transferred from a successful run in the US.) There’s little for “Blinks” – Blackpink fans – to do but watch the band’s videos and bash their heart-hammer light sticks, which produce a polite squeak, on the nearest hard surface.
When the assault on the senses finally begins, though, it is in earnest. Arena pop is known for its OTT staging and pyrotechnics. K-pop puts a rocket under all that. One of the drivers of the genre’s ubiquity in the past decade is the ability of the all-powerful South Korean production houses to cherrypick the most impactful aspects of western pop – trap beats, Swedish production signatures, anthemic pre-choruses, 1980s keyboard lines – and throw them in a blender, then sell them back to the world in enhanced forms.
