After a series of name changes, a promising Osaka quartet settled on the moniker flumpool in 2007—and Japan seemed to open up before them. The band unleashed their driving breakthrough single "Hoshi Ni Negaiwo" two years later and watched it climb to number two on the Oricon charts. flumpool were suddenly on a roll: every subsequent single, up to the raucous dance jam "Yoru Wa Nemurerukai?" in 2016, cracked the top 10. And the secret might just be their classic pop-rock touches: driving guitars, thrillingly terse strings, tight verses and open-arms choruses create an endearing style.