On 2007’s Home, Mr.Children move further in the direction it had established with its previous album, I Love U. That 2005 record had found the band doubling down on the reflective side of its sound, and its follow-up makes even more space for that element of the Japanese superstars’ musical makeup. You won’t find an album in Mr.Children’s discography that abandons its signature blend of power pop and alt-rock entirely, though, and Home too keeps those colors in sight. Don’t get sidetracked by the album’s opening cut—“Sakebi Inori” is a brief instrumental with a proggy vibe that serves as a dramatic opening-curtain flourish. But it quickly gives way to one of the LP’s peppiest cuts, the appropriately titled “Wake Me Up.” Other uptempo touchstones include the speedy rocker “Houkiboshi” (unsurprisingly tapped by Toyota for a string of commercials) and the danceable, club-friendly “Fake.” And beyond the contrast those tracks provide, there’s an abundance of tunes that tread lightly while still making a major emotional impact. Of these, “Piano Man” (not to be confused with the classic Billy Joel tune of the same title) is an outlier, maintaining a loosely swinging, decidedly jazzy feel. “Motto” is a gently twinkling, piano-based ballad flecked with delicate flute and some rather George Harrison–ish guitar lines that point to the band’s Beatles influence. Tunes such as “Sunrise,” “Irodori,” and “Another Story” provide the emotional and aesthetic core of the record—they move with measured paces, framing singer Kazutoshi Sakurai’s fluid melodies with thoughtful yet eminently approachable chord changes. The latter tune adds a little R&B and a softly soulful sax solo to the menu. Toward the end of the record, tracks like “Shirushi” bring in the heavy artillery—maximizing Mr.Children’s knack for dramatically unfolding power ballads—going big without letting things get too hectic.