Epitaph (EP)

Epitaph is the first Japanese extended play by South Korean duo Tohoshinki. It was released on March 16, 2022, by Avex Trax. Epitaph is a pop album with elements of pop rock, dance pop, and synthesizers. It was released as a follow-up to Tohoshinki's solo EPs Human (2021) by Changmin and Kimi wa Saki e Iku (2022) by Yunho, and is also the duo's first original release in Japan since XV (2019). The EP's first track, "Epitaph (For the Future)" is the lead single.

Epitaph debuted at number three on the Oricon Albums Chart, breaking Tohoshinki's streak of number one debuts. Epitaph is their lowest-charted album on the Oricon since T (2008), which debuted at number four. Epitaph also debuted at number three on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums, but topped the Billboard Japan Download Albums, with 2,402 downloads on the first week.

Epitaph accompanied Tohoshinki's nation-wide Classyc Tour in 2023, which started at the Nippon Gaishi Hall in Nagoya on February 11, 2023, and concluded at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo on June 25, 2023.

Background and release
On October 18, 2021, Avex announced that Tohoshinki would be returning to the Japanese music scene with three consecutive releases starting December 2021. Referring to the EPs as mini albums, it was announced that Changmin would be releasing his mini album Human in December 2021, followed by Yunho's mini album Kimi wa Saki e Iku in January 2022, and finally the duo comeback mini album Epitaph in February 2022. Epitaph would be the duo's first Japanese release since XV in 2019. However, due to production issues as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan, Yunho's mini album was delayed to a February 9, 2022 release, while Epitaph was delayed to March 16, 2022. Changmin's Human was released as scheduled, on December 8, 2021.

The tracklist of the album was unveiled on March 5, 2022. Avex released snippets of each track every day starting March 5, 2022, through Tohoshinki's official Twitter account. The EP's official website was also revealed. Their single "Small Talk" (2020), which sold 9,786 downloads, was also revealed to be part of the tracklist. On March 12, a music video teaser of the EP's lead single "Epitaph (For the Future)" was released. A television advertisement for the EP's release, which also featured an extended snippet of the lead single, was revealed on March 14.

From March 14 to 20, promotional images of Epitaph were posted at the Metro Promenade in the Shinjuku Station. The music video for "Epitaph (For the Future)" was released on March 16, alongside the EP. From March 16 to 22, the music video was broadcast at the Yunika Vision, a landmark of Shinjuku, every twenty minutes from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM.

Composition
Epitaph consists of six tracks. A pop album, the EP opens with "Epitaph", a pop rock dance track, with lyrics about determination toward the future. The second track "Like Snow-White" is a mid-tempo track with funk and R&B elements. "Mahoroba" draws inspiration from trap music with heavy bass. "Storm Chaser" is a mid-tempo rock ballad, and "Light My Moon Like This" is a mashup of Changmin's b-side track "Light Up My Moon" from Human (2021) and Yunho's "Shake It Like This" from Kimi wa Saki e Iku (2022). A lyric video for "Light My Moon Like This" was released on March 20.

Reception
Epitaph debuted at number two on the daily Oricon Albums Chart on the first day of release, selling 24,884 copies. It entered the Oricon Albums Chart at number three, with 36,038 copies sold on the first week for release. Epitaph broke Tohoshinki series of number one debuts in Japan, and was their lowest-charted album since T (2008), which debuted at number four. Epitaph stayed charted for 17 weeks on the Oricon, selling 45,808 copies by the end of the year, and ranking 86th on Oricon's year-end chart.

Epitaph also debuted at number three on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums, its lowest-charted album since the chart's inception in 2015. However, it topped the Billboard Japan Download Albums Chart, with over 2,402 downloads.

Track listing
Notes
 * "Epitaph (For the Future)" is stylized as "Epitaph -for the future-".
 * "Mahoroba" is stylized in all caps.
 * "Storm Chaser" is stylized as "Storm chaser".
 * "Light My Moon Like This" is stylized as "Light My Moon Like THIS".

Personnel
Musicians


 * Tohoshinki – lead vocals (all tracks), background vocals (all tracks)
 * Yoo Young-jin – background vocals (track 1), recording (1)
 * Hi-yunk – background vocals (track 1), all instruments (1)
 * Suginami Junior Chorus – background vocals (track 3)
 * Jun – background vocals (track 5)
 * Katsuhiko Yamamoto – background vocals (track 6)
 * Yascotti – background vocals (track 6)
 * Uda Shika – cello (track 1)
 * Miho Shimokawa – violin (track 1)
 * Shinjiroh Inoue – guitar (track 3)

Technical


 * Katsutoshi Yasuhara – directing (all tracks)
 * Yuka Koizumi – mastering (all tracks)
 * Makoto Yamadoi – mixing (tracks 1, 2, 4, 5), recording (1, 5), editing (3)
 * Jung Eun-kyung – recording (tracks 1, 2, 3, 5)
 * Pollen – directing (tracks 1, 2)
 * Atsushi Hattori – mixing (track 3), recording (3, 5)
 * Kevin G. Cho – directing (tracks 3, 6)
 * Dk Choo – directing (tracks 4, 5)
 * Kim Kwang-min – recording (tracks 4, 6)
 * URU – mixing (track 6)