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''Sherlock'' is the fourth EP of the South Korean boy group Shinee. The EP consists of seven tracks, including the title song "
Sherlock (Clue + Note) Sherlock may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Sherlock Holmes, a fictional detective created by Arthur Conan Doyle ** ''Sherlock'' (TV series), a BBC TV series that started in 2010 ** Sherlock Hemlock, a Muppet from the TV show ''Sesame Stree ...
", a "hybrid remix" of two songs. It was released on March 21, 2012, in South Korea under the label SM Entertainment, and was distributed by KT Music. The EP was made available online worldwide on March 19, 2012. It was Shinee's first Korean release after a year and six months hiatus. The EP was commercially successful—the title track topped the
Gaon Digital Chart The Circle Digital Chart, previously known as the Gaon Digital Chart, is the music industry standard record chart ranking the 200 most popular singles in South Korea. It provides rankings on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis, which is based o ...
, while the EP charted at number one on the
Gaon Album Chart The Circle Album Chart, previously known as the Gaon Album Chart, is a record chart ranking the 100 most popular albums, extended plays and single albums in South Korea based on their Record sales, pure sales. It is a part of the Circle Chart, pr ...
. It was the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea, with over 180,000 copies sold. It also placed tenth on the ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Heatseekers Albums Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...
and fifth on the ''Billboard'' World Albums charts.


Background and release

''Sherlock'' was Shinee's first Korean release after a year-and-a-half hiatus since the
reissue In the music industry, a reissue (also re-release, repackage or re-edition) is the release of an album or Single (music), single which has been released at least once before, sometimes with alterations or additions. Reasons for reissue New aud ...
'' Hello'' in October 2010 due to their Japanese debut and promotions in 2011. The EP was physically released on March 21, 2012, but was made available online worldwide on March 19 through online music sites such as Melon and
iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
. The choreography for "
Sherlock (Clue + Note) Sherlock may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Sherlock Holmes, a fictional detective created by Arthur Conan Doyle ** ''Sherlock'' (TV series), a BBC TV series that started in 2010 ** Sherlock Hemlock, a Muppet from the TV show ''Sesame Stree ...
" is characterized by a distinctive style, and is the work of the choreographer
Tony Testa Anthony Joseph Testa (born 31 March 1987) is an American choreographer, creative director, educator and dancer. Early life Testa started dancing at age eight in his hometown of Fort Collins, Colorado at Westin Arts Academy & Artistic Fusion Dan ...
. The music video for the title song was released on March 22. It was directed by Cho Su-hyun and shot in early March at the studios in Namyangju. Shinee can be seen in an 1800s-like museum acting like detectives working on a case.
Girls’ Generation Girls' Generation (), also known as SNSD, is a South Korean girl group formed by SM Entertainment. The group is composed of eight members: Taeyeon, Sunny, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona, and Seohyun. Originally a nine-piece ensemb ...
's Jessica makes a special appearance in the music video as a mysterious female lead who offers a decisive clue in figuring out the incident. The music video exceeded one million views in a single day.


Composition

The EP consists of seven songs in a variety of styles, including "Stranger", the main theme song of '' Strangers 6'', with a melody composed by Kenzie. The song was first released in Japanese, as a bonus track on their debut Japanese album ''
The First The First may refer to: * ''The First'' (album), the first Japanese studio album by South Korean boy group Shinee * ''The First'' (musical), a musical with a book by critic Joel Siegel * The First (TV channel), an American conservative opinion ne ...
''. The lead single "Sherlock (Clue + Note)" is a "hybrid remix", which means it consists of two independent songs ("Clue" and "Note") remixed together to create a new song. The lyrics describe Sherlock's solving of a crime through logical "clues" and intuitive "notes". The title song combines the lyrics from the two songs to create a single storyline. A Japanese version of "Sherlock (Clue + Note)", written by Natsumi Kobayashi, was included as one of the two tracks on their fourth Japanese CD single "Sherlock", which was released on May 16, 2012, with the Japanese original song "Keeping Love Again" as a
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...
. "Honesty" was written by member Jonghyun with the help of bandmate Minho, who wrote the rap lyrics, and expresses the group's appreciation towards their fans. "The Reason" features a guitar solo and strings, while "Alarm Clock" was also written by Jonghyun and tells about a man who wants to wake up from the nightmares of a breakup. Minho participated in composing the rap.


Commercial performance and reception

On March 22, 2012, the group started their official promotions and performed the title song for the first on '' M! Countdown''. This was followed by appearances on other South Korean music programs such as ''
Inkigayo ''Inkigayo'' ( ko, 인기가요; English title: ''The Music Trend'', previously ''Popular Song'') is a South Korean music program broadcast by SBS. It airs live every Sunday. The show features some of the latest and most popular artists who p ...
'' and '' Music Bank''. The EP sold over 135,000 copies at release and ranked number one on the
Gaon Album Chart The Circle Album Chart, previously known as the Gaon Album Chart, is a record chart ranking the 100 most popular albums, extended plays and single albums in South Korea based on their Record sales, pure sales. It is a part of the Circle Chart, pr ...
, making it the best-selling release of March 2012. It was the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea, with over 180,000 copies sold. It placed at number five on the ''Billboard'' World Albums chart and number ten on the ''Billboard'' Heatseekers chart.
Billboard Heatseekers Albums Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...
/ref> Billboard Charts/ref> In April, the group won first place for two consecutive weeks on ''Music Bank'' and three times on ''Inkigayo''. Shinee performed their final music stage on MBC's '' Music Core'' on April 21, 2012. Hwang Sunup of ''
IZM ''IZM'' () is a South Korean online magazine that publishes pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ...
'' magazine gave the EP 3.5 out of 5 stars, praising the experimental attempt to create the title track "Sherlock" by mixing up "Clue" and "Note" as well as the lyrics for each song. However, he was disappointed with the remaining songs on the EP, stating these feel more ordinary compared to the impact of the first three tracks.


Accolades


Track listing

;Notes * Minho is credited for writing the rap lyrics.


Charts


Weekly charts


Monthly charts


Year-end charts


Release history


References


External links


"Sherlock (Clue + Note)" Music Video

"Sherlock (Clue + Note)" Dance Version
{{Authority control Shinee EPs SM Entertainment EPs 2012 EPs Korean-language EPs