The Rose
Festival Hall, Melbourne Australia
9th of October 2026

_{Review by Kayla Hamilton}

It’s been eight years since South Korean pop-rock band The Rose had graced our shores, and judging from the audience at their show at Melbourne’s Festival Hall last night- it has been long overdue. 

With pretty much all seats sold, except those with obstructed views, a vast array of people came down to welcome them back to Australia. As the lights went dim, a ripple of excitement washed over the hall and after a song over the speakers to push up the anticipation even further…it was time. Smoke filled the stage and slowly the members took their place amongst their instruments. 

Opening the show with ‘Utopia’, the diehard Blackroses (the name of the bands fandom) understood the assignment. Lead singer Kim Woosung’s voice rallied the room. Those on the floor showed those in the stands the hand movements and within seconds it was a collective. Flowing seamlessly into their next songs and in the open bracket we had all the excitement. Bright lights, confetti cannons. It was a party.

In a quick address to the fans, they welcomed us to Rosetopia and thanked us for waiting eight years for them. Quickly the music continued with ‘Red’, with Woosung showing off his dance moves. The energy really picked up as everybody seemed well and truly in the groove from here on. In ‘Walking On The Clouds’ Woosung ended up on the barricade, leaning over onto the audience, inviting those in the front to touch his hair, like the lyrics suggested. The trust in the fans was evident and this really foreshadowed the ever building theme of the night.

Now, I’ve mentioned Woosung quite a few times already but this show has four members and all four play incredibly pivotal roles. Every single member sings beautifully, with Park Dojoon giving me absolute chills whenever he took the microphone. Even if they did not play their own instruments, the four of them could more than better carry as a vocal group and the fact they do so while playing (especially Lee Hajoon on the drums) is so impressive. Lee Taegyeom is walking charisma on the bass. Not only can he sing and play a mean bass solo, he has this swagger about him that makes him capable of stealing the spotlight at any moment. 

One thing about the Melbourne audience is that they were rowdy and it seemed that it did initially take the band a little off guard. Quickly though, they leaned into it and it made for an even better show. In the longer address to the crowd, The Rose members took turns in speaking and thanking the fans for waiting so long and sticking by them. Dojoon even read a letter he wrote before the show to ensure he said what was on his heart. This gave the show an even more emotional edge, but I will circle back to that later.

After the crowd address, they went into ‘Back To Me’ and personally, this was one of my highlights of the show. This got everybody in the room standing and dancing. This is where the ‘rockier’ part of the show kicked off. ‘Chemical’ followed with the members asking us to “make some fucking noise!”. ‘Control’ went even crazier and it was hard to build the energy back after this bracket.

There was a little more talking and this is where the band dropped a bit of a bombshell: after these last few dates of their Rosetopia they will be taking some time off. This made the whole show a little more emotional, not necessarily in a bad way. It solidified the bond between The Rose and their fans. An understanding. A thankfulness that they returned and a promise they would be waiting for them to return. 

It felt fitting though they followed this announcement with ‘Sorry’. The song that kicked it all off for them and after hearing it live, it is obvious why it put them on the map. Stirring, melancholic and just beautifully written and performed- it was one of those performances that will stick by me for years to come. They finished the main set with ‘Sour’ and ‘Wonder’ and needless to say, when they walked off the stage, the fans DEMANDED more.

Following the “one more song” chants, a video appeared on the screen. It was the music video to ‘Trauma’ that documents the struggle that the band and the members had gone through to return to the stage. All the candid moments. The recording booth sessions. The mental health struggles. Another reminder of just how important this groups fans are to them and the battles they went through to be here. This led into a very heartfelt encore performance of ‘Blue Moon’. They finished the show with a closing performance of ‘Utopia’ and it truly was a full circle moment. Those who were still a bit shy at the start of the show were now standing and joining in with the actions. By the end we were very much part of Rosetopia. The only way the could top it off was by throwing red roses into the audience as the crowd sent them off.

As a casual listener of this band, I was very excited to hear these songs live, but something very unexpected happened to me. I became invested emotionally in their journey. The casual listening had seeped into my brain and I had absorbed the songs a lot more deeper than I realised. Hearing them live and feeling the energy in the room, I too fell in love The Rose.

This show was special and I do believe this band performs with their heart on their sleeve. So no matter where you are, if you can catch them live…whether it is now or when they return from their well-deserved break, I highly suggest you do. 

I know I will be. 

The Rose will be playing one more show in Australia.
You can catch them at Sydney’s Hordern Pavillion on Sunday the 11th of October.
Tickets are still available, you can get them here.