Maps of Music

Five in the Black (2007)

Where the lyrics of Five in the Black take you, and where it was really made.

The title is a darts pun: it means five arrows landing in the black at the very centre of the target.

Key places

Recorded at SM Blue Ocean in Seoul (2007)

Recording site Big Hit Studios, Seoul — The article lists SM Blue Ocean in Seoul as the recording studio for this album. The point is placed at city level, not at the exact building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: Private company studio, not open to visitors.

Album story

Overview

• Five in the Black: second Japanese studio album and fifth overall by Tohoshinki
• Released 14 March 2007 by Rhythm Zone
• Issued in two editions: CD and CD+DVD
• Came out about a year after the previous album Heart, Mind and Soul
• Contains more dance numbers than the previous album
• Title is a play on the darts term three in the black
• The name means five arrows landing in the black at the very centre of the target

Background

• Tohoshinki held a hall tour in support of the album, from 10 May to 19 June 2007
• Junsu said the album came out with a very powerful impression
• The group's first top-10 entry on the Oricon weekly album chart came with this release

Recording

• Mastered by Ryuichi Tanaka
• Naoki Yamada mixed most tracks (1, 2, 5, 7 to 9, 11 to 13)
• Koji Morimoto mixed track 6, Masashi Kudo track 3, D.O.I. track 4, and Yoo Young Jin track 10
• Ten second engineers are credited, including Hanae Saito and Takeshi Nemoto
• The ballad Yakusoku was the last song recorded for the album
• The studio named for the recording is SM Blue Ocean in Seoul

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · ja.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in 2003 by SM Entertainment as a five-member boy band; debuted December 26, 2003 with the single "Hug" (2004).
• Yunho was appointed the band's leader; the name Dong Bang Shin Ki was finalized after several alternatives.
• Tohoshinki (東方神起) was the Japanese-market name adopted after signing with Avex Group in late 2004.

Members

• Current members: U-Know Yunho (leader) and Max Changmin.
• Former members Hero Jaejoong, Micky Yoochun and Xiah Junsu left in 2010 and formed JYJ.

Career

• Early Korean albums Tri-Angle (2004), Rising Sun (2005), "O"-Jung.Ban.Hap. (2006) and Mirotic (2008) topped domestic charts; "O"-Jung.Ban.Hap. won Album of the Year at the 21st Golden Disk Awards.
• In Japan, the band became mainstream stars after The Secret Code (2009); their Best Selection 2010 was the first album to top the Oricon Albums Chart.
• After a 2010 split, Yunho and Changmin returned as a duo with Keep Your Head Down (2011); later albums include Tone (2011), Time (2013), Tense (2014), Tree (2014), New Chapter #1 (2018) and XV (2019).
• The duo held a three-day performance at Tokyo Dome on April 27, 2025 for their 20th anniversary.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Oricon Daily Album Ranking: placed 6th
• Oricon weekly album ranking dated 26 March 2007: debut at 10th place
• This was the group's first top-10 entry on the Oricon weekly album chart
• The album was released in two forms, CD and CD+DVD, with different bonus content
• The CD edition added bonus tracks Begin (acapella version) and miss you (ballade version)
• The first-press CD carried the special track A Whole New World

Records

• Oricon Daily Album Ranking: 6th
• Oricon weekly album ranking: debut at 10th
• CD catalogue number RZCD-45530
• CD+DVD catalogue number RZCD-45529/B
• The DVD in the CD+DVD edition includes the music videos of six singles from the album
• The DVD also includes the Japanese-language music video of Rising Sun, which had been left off the previous DVD

Sources: ja.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The CD+DVD edition leaves out tracks 14 to 16: Begin (acapella version), miss you (ballad version), and A Whole New World.
• A Whole New World is a cover of the theme from the Disney film Aladdin, and it was performed at a Club Disney event in January 2007.
• The DVD in the CD+DVD edition includes the six singles on the album, plus the Rising Sun Japanese-language music video.
• Yakusoku was the last song recorded for this album.
• The track ZION also appears in a remix on the Purple Line single.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · ja.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

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