is a song by Japanese duo

Yoasobi Yoasobi is a Japanese pop duo formed in 2019. It consists of musician and record producer Ayase (music producer), Ayase and singer-songwriter Lilas Ikuta, under the moniker Ikura. With the slogan "novel into music", the duo originally released Y ...

from their second EP, ''

The Book 2 ''The Book 2'' is the second Japanese-language EP (third overall) by Japanese duo Yoasobi. It was released on December 1, 2021, through Sony Music Entertainment Japan, eleven months after their debut EP '' The Book'' (2021). It consists of eight t ...

'' (2021). It was released as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

through

Sony Music Entertainment Japan , often abbreviated as SMEJ or simply SME, and also known as Sony Music Japan for short (stylized as ''SonyMusic''), is a Japanese music arm for Sony. Founded in 1968 as CBS/Sony, SMEJ is directly owned by Sony, Sony Group Corporation and is ...

on January 6, 2021, the same date as the duo's debut EP, '' The Book''. As an opening

theme Theme or themes may refer to: * Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos * Theme (computing), a custom graphical appearance for certain software. * Theme (linguistics), topic * Theme ( ...

for the second season of the

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

television series ''

Beastars ''Beastars'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Paru Itagaki. It was serialized in Akita Shoten's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Champion'' from September 2016 to October 2020, with its chapters c ...

'', "Kaibutsu" is about a

carnivore A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant Plants are the eukaryotes that form the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae; they ar ...

trying to coexist with

herbivore A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat ...

s in a cruel world, based on ''Jibun no Mune ni Jibun no Mimi o Oshi Atete'', written by the anime's writer

Paru Itagaki is a Japanese manga artist. She is best known as the creator of the manga series ''Beastars'', for which she has won numerous awards. She is the daughter of manga artist Keisuke Itagaki. Biography Paru Itagaki began painting in kindergarten, a ...

. Commercially, "Kaibutsu" peaked at number two on the ''Billboard'' Japan Hot 100, and number 87 on the

Global 200 The Global 200 is the list of ecoregions identified by the World Wide Fund for Nature ( WWF), the global conservation organization, as priorities for conservation. According to WWF, an ecoregion is defined as a "relatively large unit of land or w ...

. The

double A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...

CD single A CD single is a single (music), music single in the form of a compact disc (CD). Originally the ''CD single'' standard (as defined in the Rainbow Books, Red Book) was an 8 cm (3-inch) "mini CD" (''CD3''); later on the term referred to any si ...

with "

Yasashii Suisei is a song by Japanese duo Yoasobi from their second EP, ''The Book 2'' (2021). It was released as a single on January 20, 2021, by Sony Music Entertainment Japan, and released as a double A-side CD single together with "Kaibutsu" on March 24. Th ...

", released on March 24, debuted at number two on the

Oricon Singles Chart The Oricon Singles Chart is the Japanese music industry-standard Single (music), singles popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Chart rankings are based on physical singles' sales. Until 2017, Oricon did not track down ...

. The song earned four wins for both download and streaming categories of Song of the Year (Japan) and Best 5 Songs at the 36th

Japan Gold Disc Award The is an award presented by the Record music Industry Association of Japan in the field of music. The Japan Gold Disc Awards have multiple Grand Prix categories, including: Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year (download and ...

, and received diamond streaming certification from

Recording Industry Association of Japan The is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved in the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969. The RIAJ's activities include pro ...

(RIAJ). It was featured on ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' 10 Best Songs of 2021 list, becoming the only Japanese song on it.

Background and release

On November 5, 2020, it was announced that Yoasobi would perform the opening theme for the second season of the anime television series ''

'', titled "Kaibutsu". The TV-size version was previewed in the trailer released the same day. The song was based on the short story , written by

, who also wrote and illustrated the manga. "Kaibutsu" was released to

digital music Digital audio is a representation of sound recorded in, or converted into, digital form. In digital audio, the sound wave of the audio signal is typically encoded as numerical samples in a continuous sequence. For example, in CD audio, samp ...

and

streaming Streaming media refers to multimedia delivered through a network for playback using a media player. Media is transferred in a ''stream'' of packets from a server to a client and is rendered in real-time; this contrasts with file downl ...

platforms January 6, 2021. The song was released as a

, together with "

" on March 24. The single came in 2 versions: limited edition (anime edition) and fan club limited edition for members of "Club Yoasobi", Yoasobi's official fan club website. Both versions included the original songs, TV size version songs, and non-credit opening and ending video from ''Beastars''. The fan club limited edition also included the acoustic session of " Tabun" and "

Ano Yume o Nazotte is a song by Japanese duo Yoasobi from their debut EP, '' The Book'' (2021). It was released as a single on January 18, 2020, through Sony Music Entertainment Japan. Like their previous single, "Ano Yume o Nazotte" was based on Monocon 2019-wi ...

". Later, the song was included on their second EP ''

'', released on December 1. Yoasobi announced to release the English version of "Kaibutsu", titled "Monster" on July 30, alongside the accompanying music video, and aired the full song for the first time on their radio show ''Yoasobi's All Night Nippon X'' on July 27. It is the duo's third English song after " Into the Night, and "

RGB The RGB color model is an additive color model in which the red, green, and blue primary colors of light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colors. The name of the model comes from the initials of the three ...

". Later, the song was included on the duo's first English-language EP ''

E-Side ''E-Side'' is the debut English-language EP (second overall) by Japanese duo Yoasobi. It was released on November 12, 2021, through Sony Music Entertainment Japan. The EP consists of eight tracks from the duo's songs in the English language, incl ...

'', release on November 12.

Lyrics and composition

"Kaibutsu" is an upbeat fast-paced song with a catchy chorus, tells about a

trying to coexist with

herbivores A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat ...

in a cruel world. Although this idea is unrealistic, it still protects the herbivore. To adhere to its ideals, it decides to become strong and confront the whole world. The song is in the key of

A-flat minor A-flat minor is a minor scale based on A, consisting of the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has seven flats. Its relative major is C-flat major (or enharmonically B major), its parallel major is A-flat major, and ...

on the verses and break,

C-sharp minor C-sharp minor is a minor scale based on C, with the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature consists of four sharps. The C-sharp natural minor scale is: Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale ar ...

on the first chorus,

D-flat major D-flat major is a major scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B and C. Its key signature has five flats. The D-flat major scale is: Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale are written in w ...

on the bridge and in

D minor D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative major is F major and its parallel major is D major. The D natural minor scale is: Changes needed ...

in the final chorus, and is at 170 beats per minute with a running time of 3 minutes and 26 seconds.

Critical reception

American magazine ''

'' ranked "Kaibutsu" number five on its list of the 10 Best Songs of 2021, becoming the only song from a Japanese act on the list, and being described as a "seamless" integration of "a giant

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved/bent back or has a deeply grooved indentation, which serves to grab, latch or in any way attach itself onto another object. The hook's d ...

with furious

math rock Math rock is a style of Alternative rock, alternative and indie rock with roots in bands such as King Crimson and Rush (band), Rush. It is characterized by complex, atypical rhythmic structures (including irregular stopping and starting), cou ...

riffs", " jazzy

chromatic Diatonic and chromatic are terms in music theory that are used to characterize scales. The terms are also applied to musical instruments, intervals, chords, notes, musical styles, and kinds of harmony. They are very often used as a pair, es ...

runs", and "a seismic EDM-esque drop". Additionally, critics said that the song gave "yearning", and "cinematic nature" and was "wholly unsurprised" to be served as the theme song to the anime ''Beastars''.

Commercial performance

"Kaibutsu" debuted at number 14 on the ''Billboard Japan'' Hot 100 of January 18, 2021 and peaked at number 2 on the chart of March 31, due to the CD single release. The song also peaked at number 87 on the ''Billboard'' Global 200 and number 39 on the ''Billboard'' Global Excl. US of January 30. "Kaibutsu" was certified diamond for streaming by

(RIAJ) on December 26, 2023, surpassing 500 million streaming, the third song to do so after "

Yoru ni Kakeru is the debut single by Japanese duo Yoasobi from their debut EP, '' The Book'' (2021). Its music video was first uploaded via YouTube on November 16, 2019, before being officially released on December 15, 2019 by Sony Music Entertainment Japan. ...

" and " Gunjō". The CD single "Kaibutsu / Yasashii Suisei" debuted and peaked at number 2 on the

for the chart issue date of April 5, 2021, selling 23,761 copies, and also number 2 on the ''Billboard Japan'' Top Single Sales chart, selling 27,275 copies for the chart issue date of March 31, 2021.

Music video

The music video "Kaibutsu" was premiered on January 13, 2021, directed by Rina Mitsuzumi, with 2D animation by Kaori Onishi and motion graphics by Jun Matsuda and Cafuu. The music video depicts the conflict and determination of the main character, Legoshi, that wears a sense of speed and darkness. The music video surpassed 100 million views on June 22 and 200 million views on April 4, 2022.

Live performance and cover

Yoasobi premiered the live performance "Kaibutsu" for the first time in their first online concert—Keep Out Theater on February 14, 2021, where the song was the number fifth. The duo gave a television debut performance of the song at the 63rd

Japan Record Awards is a major music awards show, held annually in Japan that recognizes outstanding achievements in the Japan Composer's Association. Established in 1959, the Japan Record Awards are one of the oldest and most prestigious music awards in the countr ...

on December 30, alongside "

", and "

Moshi mo Inochi ga Egaketara is a song by Japanese duo Yoasobi from their second EP, ''The Book 2''. It was first released on December 1, 2021, through Sony Music Entertainment Japan, and later released as a standalone promotional single on August 12, 2022. Written by Ayas ...

". On February 4, 2021, A cover of "Kaibutsu" by Japanese singer

Masayuki Suzuki Masayuki Suzuki (鈴木雅之, ''Suzuki Masayuki'', born September 22, 1956, in Ōta, Tokyo) is a Japanese singer best known as a former member of pop group Rats & Star (previously called ''Chanels''), and for performing the opening themes for ...

was released as a promotional single from his 35th anniversary cover greatest hit album ''Discover Japan DX'', scheduled for release on February 23.

Accolades

Track listing

Credits and personnel

Song * Ayase – producer, songwriter *

Ikura Red caviar is a caviar made from the roe of salmonid fishes (various species of salmon and trout), which has an intense reddish hue. It is distinct from black caviar, which is made from the roe of sturgeon.Nichola Fletcher, ''Caviar: A Globa ...

– vocals * AssH – guitar *

– based story writer * Takayuki Saitō – vocal

recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, re ...

* Masahiko Fukui – mixing * Hidekazu Sakai – mastering * Kazuyoshi Saitō – cover artwork design Music video * Rina Mitsuzumi – director * Jun Matsuda – motion graphics * Cafuu – motion graphics * Kaori Onishi – 2D animation * AI Rinna – design supporter

Charts

Weekly charts

Monthly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

* *
English translation of ''I Press My Own Ear to My Chest''
{{Beastars 2021 singles 2021 songs Animated music videos Animated series theme songs Anime songs Beastars Double A-side singles Existentialist works Music based on short fiction Song recordings produced by Ayase (music producer) Songs about monsters Songs in Japanese Songs written by Ayase (music producer) Sony Music Entertainment Japan singles Yoasobi songs