Brotherly bond of band members remains strong post-hiatus
Beloved by fangirls, 5SOS’s newest album “5SOS5” debuts a more mature sound. PHOTO CREDIT: Juliana Lepore | News Editor
With the release of their fifth studio album “5SOS5,” in late September, pop band 5 Seconds of Summer showcased a new and mature sound never before seen from the group.
This album follows their fourth album, “CALM,” which came out in March 2020. The band has been touring across the world on their “Take My Hand Tour” since April, performing songs from “CALM” and teasing this new release. I attended the tour date in New York City on July 13, and it’s one of my favorite 5SOS shows of the ones I’ve gone to.
The group, which consists of lead singer and guitarist Luke Hemmings, drummer Ashton Irwin, guitarist Michael Clifford and bassist Calum Hood, said their inspiration for this album came during the isolation period of the COVID-19 pandemic. The four wrote and recorded the album in late 2020 while isolating together in Joshua Tree, California.
I have been a fan of 5 Seconds of Summer since 2013 when I first saw them perform live as an opening act for One Direction on their “Take Me Home” tour. Since then, I have seen them a total of seven times: twice with One Direction and five times solo. They are my top artist every year on “Spotify Wrapped,” and I’m considering getting a tattoo with their song lyrics later this year.
So needless to say, I was excited for this album to come out.
Let’s start off with the pre-released singles on the album: “COMPLETE MESS,” “Take My Hand,” “BLENDER,” “Me Myself & I” and “Older.” Each gives off a different vibe, which I love. I think that these songs were the perfect ones to choose as singles off the album because each time they released a new one, it sounded completely unique, which made fans even more excited to hear how the album would sound as a whole.
While “COMPLETE MESS” and “Take My Hand” sound like more mainstream pop, “BLENDER” is a fast-paced masterpiece describing a tumultuous relationship between two individuals. “Me Myself & I” is the song I scream at the top of my lungs in the car, describing how it feels to let go of someone good for you.
“Older” deserves its own paragraph. Sung primarily by Hemmings and his girlfriend, Sierra Deaton of the former pop duo “Alex and Sierra,” this song is a love ballad that highlights the couple’s feelings about each other.
It speaks to how they never want to grow old without each other and had me in my feelings for at least a day after it was released. 5SOS has had some slow songs in the past, but nothing as heartfelt as this. It’s amazing to see the maturity in their lyrics and music as they get older. Hemmings and Deaton’s vocals together are melodic and angelic.
My personal favorite off of the album (so far) is “Bad Omens.” It talks about trying desperately to save a relationship while you feel the other person slipping away slowly and ultimately leaving for somebody else. My favorite lyric is “I cried in your dark brown eyes for the thousandth time/ ‘cause you love somebody, I died when you left that night for the thousandth time/ ‘cause you love somebody else.” The song is catchy and beautifully written and recorded.
Another one that I love is track 12 on the album “Best Friends.” This song just feels like sunshine. It is an extremely cheesy song about how the members are best friends and how they have been for over 10 years. It had me reminiscing on how long I’ve been a fan of theirs and thinking about my friendships that I cherish in my life.
A song that I feel is underrated from the album is the absolute BOP that is “You Don’t Go To Parties.” The chorus goes, “It’s 5 a.m. clinging to my couch, and everyone I ever knew is standing in my house./ Oh I wonder who I’m looking for because you don’t go to parties anymore.” This song is by far the most catchy on the album, and its groovy-pop feel is enough to have me obsessed.
To end off the article, let’s rapid-fire some of my other favorite honorable mentions of the album: “Caramel,” “Bloodhound,” “HAZE,” “TEARS!” and “Moodswings.” A lot of emphasis on “Moodswings.” That’s another scream-cry in the car song.