() is a song by Japanese band Sakanaction. It was released in July and August 2010 as the band's first single after the release of their fourth album Kikuuiki in March 2010. The band's first summer-time release, "Identity" was an upbeat song featuring Latin percussion and lyrics about self-identity. In September 2011, it was added to the band's fifth studio album, Documentaly. The song was well reviewed by Japanese music critics, who enjoyed the Latin percussive elements and the song's upbeat melody. Commercially, the song reached number twelve on Oricon's single chart and number seven on the Billboard Japan Hot 100, performing worse than the band's previous single "Aruku Around" (2010), but better than their earlier singles "Sen to Rei" (2008) and "Native Dancer" (2009). Background and development After the release of their album Shin-shiro in early 2009, the band spent much of their time experimenting with different styles for their song "Aruku Around", testing the audience reaction to the song at summer festivals. After "Aruku Around" was released as a single in January 2010, it became a popular and critical success; reaching number three on Oricon's single charts, praised for its strong arrangement and band vocalist Ichiro Yamaguchi's poetic lyrics. After "Aruku Around", the band released their fourth studio album Kikuuiki in March 2010. Though the band had begun thinking of ideas for this record in February 2009, less than a month after their previous album, they recorded the bulk of the material in January and February 2010. "Identity" was a song that was born from the band's early demo sessions for Kikuuiki in 2009, during the same period when the band were experimenting on "Aruku Around" to create a signature song with a recognisable Sakanaction sound, and considering what a single's role was. After Kikuuiki, the band planned to release an "easy to digest" song in a similar vein to "Aruku Around". To promote Kikuuiki, the band performed a thirteen-date national tour of Japan in April and May, Sakanaquarium 2010 Kikuuiki. At the tour final on May 28 at Zepp Tokyo, the band performed "Identity" for the first time during the concert's encore. On the same day, the song was announced as the band's next single, scheduled for release in August. Writing and inspiration The song was conceived in 2009, as the band's next work after the song "Me ga Aku Aiiro" (2010), the leading track from Kikuuiki.