and more layered sound is attributed to the inclusion of other musical instruments such as keys, piano, and strings, concurrent with their traditional rock-based setup of guitar, bass and drums. Many fans of the band were initially taken aback by the album's direction. Indeed, music journalist Nick Mindicino later reflected on how the band had "crafted something truly ingenious and unexpected: a somber, honest, polished and pop-alternative record." Andrew Sacher of BrooklynVegan noted how the band "traded their snotty pop punk for a warmer, softer, and often ballad-driven form of alternative rock" on Coming Home. In a 2014 article for Contactmusic, Joe DeAndrea likewise noted how the album had "a much tighter sound musically with a focus on melodies and "mature" lyrics as opposed to rockin’ pop-punk riffs." Most distinctive among the musical arrangements on Coming Home is that only three of the album's thirteen tracks ("Hold My Hand", "Taken Back by You", "Too Good to Be") contain high tempos of over 130 beats per minute. Unlike their earlier work, with fast-paced pop punk songs such as "My Friends Over You" and "Truth of My Youth" (both in excess of 150 bpm), various tracks such as "Oxygen", "Make Your Move", "When I Die", "Connected", and "Boulders" contain "moderately slow" tempos of no more than 80 bpm. Prior to the album's release, Chad Gilbert explained, "The songs are all pretty different, sonically speaking" and said that lead single "It's Not Your Fault", has "big, full guitars and a piano line that goes throughout. It's pretty anthemic, and Jordan's voice has never sounded better." The guitarist also noted that the album's cleaner guitar sound was attributed to little distortion effects used in comparison to earlier albums, while describing "On My Mind" as "this modern New Found Glory twist on a classic rock song." Brendan Manley of Alternative Press called the album a "statement of sentiment that stands apart in the NFG discography", while The Palm Beach Post opined that, "Coming Home is similar, in spirit, to the 1990s crooning of Chicago's brilliant Smoking Popes. Jordan Pundik's vocal delivery curls into sweetness, rather than a snarl. Wrapped around journal-entry cute lines on the boppy, '80s-ish "Hold My Hand" and the earnestly protective pleadings of "It's Not Your Fault." Jack Foley of Indie London wrote "Gilbert’s guitars are crisp, lively and fresh, while the vocal melodies are strong enough to have everyone singing along