The accompaniment to my Tuesday evening was provided by a couple hundred rabid fans jammed into the Elysium for a seriously rare opportunity: catching Korean pop idols in the flesh, in this case Victoria, Amber, Luna, Sulli and Krystal, the five lovely ladies of f(x). Placed together in 2009 by Korean conglomerate SM Entertainment, they have continually topped the Korean charts and racked up almost 100 million views on YouTube since.   

Not only is their coming a windfall for local K-pop fans, but it is an interesting proposition for f(x) itself. How does a group that has only been playing in the Korean big time, aside from some arena appearances stateside and worldwide, suddenly transition into performing at a tiny Austin nightclub at 1:30 in the morning?  

Judging from the crowd, really well. When f(x) were on stage, the decibel level stayed fully in the red. Even at the late hour, fans frantically waved balloons and wands embossed with the group’s name at a rate that even shocked the group. “Isn’t anybody tired?” asked group rapper, and Tegan and Sara’s lost sibling, Amber.  The unanimous answer: “No!”

With a response like that, the group had no choice but to give a killer performance, even though the set was a mere four songs long. Displaying perfect choreography, which is  not something you see often at SXSW, and strong vocals over a mix of electro and hip-hop, it was a performance that fulfilled any fan’s dreams and would surprise even the most jaded hipster.

If K-pop is indeed taking over the world, I now stand with the many that say: “Welcome to our new masters!” We will be having a lot more fun, and we will be learning a new language. It is a win-win.