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Dreamcatcher Ends “Road To Utopia” Promotions With One Last Gust Of Wind

Frank Sanchez

Frank Sanchez

— 10 min read

K-Pop — Dreamcatcher Recall

“Road To Utopia” promotions end this past week amidst Dreamcatcher’s last performances of “Wind Blows” in late February 2021.

Dreamcatcher group picture after their last “Wind Blows” performance at Show Champion, 02/24/21. Twitter credit: showchampion1

Jump to Dreamcatcher Official Lightstick TL;DR Info

“Road To Utopia” promotions ended this past week for Dreamcatcher, capping off a 3 week set that had Dreamcatcher breaking their own records, some new ground, and of course, promoting not one but two songs off of the album in separate cycles. I’ll be doing an overall retrospective on how Dreamcatcher’s latest comeback went, because there was a ton that went on during it, but for now, let’s check out what happened this past week.

Dreamcatcher’s Hanteo sales as of 02/26/21. Twitter credit: girlgroupsales

First off, let’s start with some numbers, because there are two big ones out there. The first is, obviously, album sales, with Dreamcatcher crossing the 85,000 mark on the Hanteo chart according to Twitter tracking account girlgroupsales. Fansigns more than likely have driven this surge in sales since the last time I mentioned numbers overall, with a five-figure sales week rocketing Dreamcatcher even higher past their “Lose Myself” 56,000+ number. We should see sales drop off a bit as fansigns come to an end (still a couple coming up this week), but everything after this point is honestly, to me, just gravy. Will Dreamcatcher pass 100,000 on Hanteo the next comeback? If this number is any indication, it seems like it’s possible.

Dreamcatcher’s current “Odd Eye” MV view count on YouTube as of 02/28/21.

The number to mention was a massive spike in YouTube music video views. After the music video achieved 20 million views (and thus unlocked the last of the viewing goals Dreamcatcher Company set for fans), the expectation was that things would settle down a bit. But a curious couple of days during the week saw “Odd Eye” surge all the way to 31 million views in a couple of days, catching up to and surpassing the pace currently being set by “BOCA” and it’s 34 million view marker.

Why this happened is honestly anyone’s guess — concern radiated from some in the InSomnia fandom a few weeks prior, noting how slowly YouTube views were climbing, an oddity given how far every other metric (album sales, charting, and appearances) were exceeding expectations. Such concern turned out to be completely unwarranted after this week, leaving some fans scratching their heads over the often mysterious YouTube algorithms for calculating valid views. One prevalent theory is that the 11 million or so views are delayed streaming numbers from two weeks ago, while others think that recent appearances on some popular shows or more ad buys may have ratcheted the numbers forward. Regardless of how it happened, the outcome is that “Odd Eye” is on-pace to be Dreamcatcher’s number 1 overall viewed video all-time, and currently holds a top 5 spot in terms of “most watched girl group K-Pop videos of 2021”. I’m content to nod my head and be happy the views are matching perceived growth for Dreamcatcher.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6FnECoSlrQ[/embed]

Performance-wise, we saw Dreamcatcher appear on the rest of the week’s music show circuit to perform “Wind Blows”, including Inkigayo, The Show, and the last stop, Show Champion (which I highly recommend since the group apparently played a little mini-game to determine who would be highlighted in the performance’s extended “ending fairy” pose). And we saw some other performances pop up elsewhere as well — the first of which was a really nice 4K video performance of the cyberpunk-rock inspired B-side on Genie’s “Play Color” series. Picking “Wild Orange” seemed appropriate for this — we’ve seen an array of neon-type colors for this set of extended promotions and orange seemed to be the only missing color. Seeing this in 4K along with a blend of badass black-and-white styling and rock star-like piercings on the group was a treat to see.

But this couldn’t be Dreamcatcher without a little bit of chaos to balance out the killer performances, and we got that in spades with the M2 relay version of “Wind Blows”. True to form, Dreamcatcher came up with unique choreography integrating members shuffling up to the front as well as the front-and-center member, including some really fun moments with SuA/Siyeon and JiU/Handong/Yoohyeon, among others. To be honest, this was an unexpected treat and a pleasant surprise — B-sides don’t normally get some of the regular promotions treatment as far as Dreamcatcher is concerned (we saw no relay dance for “Red Sun” or “Break the Wall” last year, after all), so seeing one for “Wind Blows” was great.

Dreamcatcher’s “Wind Blows” makes it to the top 5 on Show Champion, 02/24/21. Reddit credit: /r/dreamcatcher
Dreamcatcher’s “Odd Eye” makes it to the top 5 on M! Countdown, 02/25/21. Reddit credit: /r/dreamcatcher

Speaking of surprises, we got a double helping of them during music shows this week — Dreamcatcher getting “Wind Blows” nominated into the top 5 on Show Champion, and making top 4 weeks on M! Countdown after promotions ended for “Odd Eye”, one of a few shows where attendance is not required to win. From a speculative standpoint, Dreamcatcher’s strong physical sales week, the beginning of the YouTube surge in music video views, and maybe some broadcast points may have contributed to these achievements, but the important thing is that they happened. That Dreamcatcher has been able to sustain this level of ranking beyond their strongest-performing weeks is yet another testament to the growth and sustainability the group is building, slowly but surely, on the homefront in South Korea.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xolNczYwquo[/embed]

Continuing down the past week’s variety path, we returned to the ClevrTV channel, where JiU, SuA, and Yoohyeon continued their mentoring and dancing session with one of ClevrTV’s young girl groups, Vitamin. The video saw Dreamcatcher return the favor from the previous week’s video of them learning Vitamin choreography for “The Way to School” with Vitamin learning “Odd Eye” choreography. You can see the results, along with fellow girl group Pierce, in the Clevr Studio group cover for “Odd Eye”.

This was nice to see, not just for seeing the nice interactions as the choreography was taught but also to hear Dreamcatcher answer questions about idols, particularly when JiU rather assertively responded that it was important that young people get enough sleep and not exhaust themselves. Idol life is certainly difficult, but if the youths from ClevrTV move on to pursuing it, it’s good to know Dreamcatcher is pushing health and safety over anything else.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvYqNmDMgIU[/embed]

Continuing down the variety trail, NADOL continues to slowly trickle their releases from their Idol Ground show by continuing on to interview and talent segments. Yoohyeon was first, and as always, she talked about a variety of things she’s been trying to do as well as had some Yoohyeon-type clumsy moments. Well worth watching — especially with three more videos to come for Siyeon, JiU, and SuA respectively).

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZykKC0V_8io[/embed]

Dreamcatcher also returned to the “On The Way Home” live performance series from SBS MTV’s “The Show” with an exit live performance of “Wind Blows”. These are always fun, just because they are filmed literally on the way out of the facility and leading to some potentially funny interactions, like the elevator opening for someone to try to ride it (and Dreamcatcher apologizing that it wasn’t possible), Siyeon almost going the wrong way, and elevator shenanigans galore.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmVwz45MwD0[/embed]

Lastly on the variety front this past week came one of two videos from K-Pop related channel ROLLING K-Pop, of which Dreamcatcher has been a frequent visitor. The first of these videos was new for the group as they participated in “The Challengers”, a fun little series where fans submit original choreography for a segment of a group’s song that the group judges, then makes into a brand new hybrid choreography. It was great to see both Dreamcatcher compliment and be impressed with the ten submissions that made the final cut as well as how they break down and analyze choreography, not to mention put a brand new one together on the spot. It’s a testament to how multi-skilled and perceptive idols need to be when it comes to the core talent of dancing and choreography that K-Pop is known for, but also of the amount of creativity that Dreamcatcher fans have exhibited in covering and dancing to Dreamcatcher songs.

True to form, however, Dreamcatcher is more than happy to return the favor to its passionate fanbase, and that came in the form of two pieces of news close to the end of the week. The first was an announcement that Dreamcatcher would be attending KCON:TACT 3, the continuation of KCON events that have moved online in the wake of the current pandemic. Dreamcatcher’s appearance on KCON:TACT 2 last fall was a great treat, especially as they got to see fans on the screen, perform songs, and generally show they’re getting more recognition through being asked to appear. KCON:TACT 3 is March 20–28, right in the midst of the release of Dreamcatcher’s Japanese album “Eclipse”, so it’s definitely going to be a busy week for the group. Watching KCON:TACT live in any form requires a subscription fee to the KCON:TACT YouTube channel, and they’ve hiked the price a bit from last time. Whether or not you choose to plunk down the cash is your choice, but another live performance and set of appearances by Dreamcatcher will be entertaining either way.

Dreamcatcher’s official lightstick picture, sitting in its coffin case. Twitter credit: hf_dreamcatcher

Regardless of whether or not you choose to spend the cash to see Dreamcatcher at KCON:TACT 3, however, Dreamcatcher Company is offering up a chance to do so in style, releasing news about Dreamcatcher’s official lightstick via social media late this past week. We were promised details about this way back during the 4th anniversary vLive, so seeing more concrete news was great to see. One of the primary new bits of news was the case, which comes in a coffin — something which even fans of other groups were commenting on. Of course Dreamcatcher, the dark concept group, would have a dark concept case to put it in, and the design overall looks extremely high-quality. And at 43,000 KRW (around $40 USD, give or take exchange rates), it seems very reasonable for a piece of merchandise that has become a primary marker of being a fan of a K-Pop group. There may not be live-attended concerts for quite some time, but when there are, Dreamcatcher fans will be ready.

Dreamcatcher Official Lightstick TL;DR Information

(taken from Twitter announcement post)

Contents of Dreamcatcher’s official lightstick package. Twitter credit: hf_dreamcatcher

For those that want a TL;DR, here’s what we know about the lightstick (or light staff) so far:

Merchant info:

  • Sold on xOfficial shop (other stores still in negotiations)
  • Date of Pre-orders begin: March 4th, 2021 (unspecified time in KST)
  • Price: 43,000 KRW (approx. $40 USD, varying based on exchange)

Modes:

Dimensions:

  • Light Stick: 90 x 282 x 90 mm
  • Extension: 34 x 271 x 34 mm
  • Full Size: 90 x 785 x 90 mm

Charging/Battery Info:

  • Battery capacity: 2000mAh
  • Charging time: 3 hrs
  • Usage time: 5hrs
  • Interface: USB-C

Contents:

  • Package Box (coffin shape)
  • Lightstick
  • Manual
  • Strap
  • USB Type-C Charging Cable

I’m sure many InSomnia are looking forward to buying this piece of official merchandise and tossing more support at the group — and that’s even before hearing about the accompanying dark robe that was supposed to go with it. We may have to wait until this week for that, but it’s sure to show up.

Other tidbits of Dreamcatcher news you may have missed this week include:

KCON:TACT 3’s announcement for Dreamcatcher. Twitter credit: KCON_official

As you can see, even though Dreamcatcher’s 6th mini-album promotions are winding down, InSomnia continue to be one of K-Pop’s most spoiled fandoms as far as content. The group is far from stopping their momentum, and after what will hopefully be a bit of rest, will be returning to work on the road to Japanese album release “Eclipse” and KCON:TACT 3. As always, I’ll be here to recap the latest in Dreamcatcher news, so be sure to check back next week!

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