Shoudou

Shoudou
Single by B'z
from the album MONSTER
Released	January 25, 2006
Promotions	#1 (Detective Conan TV Series) #2 (Kuitan TV Theme)
Length	7:24
Label	Vermillion Records
Producer	Tak Matsumoto
B'z singles chronology
"Yuruginai Mono Hitotsu" (2006) "Shoudou" (2006) "SPLASH!" (2006)

B'z in the promotional video for "Shoudou" filmed at Osanbashi Hall along with the featured calligraphy for the title's kanji characters.

Shoudou (衝動, Impulse) is the fortieth single by B'z, released on January 25, 2006. The all rock single was an immediate hit for the band that generated yet another high-energy song to introduce to their catalogue and live shows. The title song served as the opening theme to the Detective Conan anime series from January 9 to May 8 of 2006, and was their second to do so, after 1999's "girigiri chop". Months later, the band's next single, "Yuruginai Mono Hitotsu", would serve as the second tie-in with the series for the year when it served as the theme to that year's annual movie, Detective Conan: The Private Eyes' Requiem. The B-side to the single, "Kesshou", was announced as the theme to the Noriyuki Higashiyama detective drama Kuitan, for which it accompanied all episodes of the series.

The single was collected along with the 2005 single "OCEAN" on the band's next studio album, MONSTER, albeit in remixed form. "Shoudou ~MONSTER MiX~" was remixed by American producer Jay Baumgardner who gave the song an entirely new balance with the guitar and vocals receiving numerous leveling differences compared to the original. Later, the single version of the song was collected onto B'z compilations on two occasions: B'z The Best "ULTRA Pleasure" in 2008 and B'z The Best XXV 1999-2012 in 2013. In addition, it can also be found on The Best of Detective Conan 3 along with "Yuruginai Mono Hitotsu" and a number of other opening and ending themes to the series.

The packaging of the single includes a special illustration drawn by the creator of Detective Conan, Gosho Aoyama. The card features a hand-drawn rendering of both Tak and Koshi with the titular detective from the series. Notably, it was also the first B'z single or album to be released in the month of January in their then eighteen year history. Six years earlier in 2000, "Konya Tsuki no Mieru Oka ni" was scheduled for a January launch before being pushed to February to accommodate a change in the track listing.

The music video filmed for the release features B'z performing in Osanbashi Hall while calligrapher Soun Takeda paints out the characters for "Shoudou". B'z performed the title song on television on two different occasions. The band played the song on the January 20 episode of MUSIC FIGHTER at the beginning of the year, and then closed the year by performing the song for Music Station SUPER LIVE 2006 on December 22. The band also performed the B-side "Kesshou" on fellow music program HOT 10 on February 5 and did not pair it with "Shoudou".

At release, the single was yet another success for the band, having had its number-one debut on the Weekly Oricon Singles chart—their thirty-sixth consecutive to do so—and finishing first on the chart for the month of February as well. After spending nineteen weeks in total on the singles charts, the song finished as the twenty-second highest selling single of the year 2006. Ultimately, "Shoudou" has enjoyed an enthusiastic reception from fans, with it finding a place in a number of setlists since its release—the most recent of which was during the band's 2012 foray into North America, B'z LIVE-GYM 2012 -Into Free-, where it was used to close out the main setlist. On home video, performances of the song can be seen on both B'z LIVE-GYM 2006 "MONSTER'S GARAGE" and B'z LIVE in Namba 2006, where it was paired in a medley with "Ai no Bakudan".

Track listing

1. Shoudou — Impulse, 衝動

   A rock single with a frenetic pace, "Shoudou" is the fastest and shortest B'z single in their catalogue with a runtime of only 3 minutes and approximately 14 seconds in its original incarnation without silence included. The song has worked very well in live settings for the band, often being paired with another song such as "Ai no Bakudan" in 2006 and "IT'S SHOWTIME!!" in 2012. A remixed version titled "Shoudou ~MONSTER MiX~" found exclusively on the band's 2006 album MONSTER accentuates the guitar and vocals at differing points than the original.

2. Kesshou — Crystal, 結晶

   The song was dead stock from earlier recording sessions, although the band in an interview did not remember off-hand exactly when it had been recorded. Due to those credited in the production on the single and the use of a drum machine, it is speculated the song is from 2001 or 2002. Although the song has never been peformed during a LIVE-GYM, it was performed on television on the February 5 edition of HOT 10. Unusually, it was the only song performed by the band in that showing, whereas typically it would be paired with the associated single.

Personnel

B'z

• Tak Matsumoto: Guitar, Music Composition, Arrangement
• Koshi Inaba: Vocals, Lyric Composition, Arrangement

Support Members

• Shane Gaalaas: Drums (Track 1)
• Akihito Tokunaga: Bass, Arrangement, Programming