‘5SOS5’ Album Review: With New Voices and New Sounds, 5 Seconds of Summer redefine their Musical Identity

Only a handful of musical acts have undergone a sonic transformation as extensive as Aussie quartet 5 Seconds of Summer. The band — made up of Luke Hemmings, Michael Clifford, Calum Hood, and Ashton Irwin — was introduced to the music scene as a pop-punk boy band through hits such as 2014’s “She Looks So Perfect.” By 2018, the group had evolved to be unrecognizable, ditching the punk sound and boyband label through their next breakthrough hit, “Youngblood.” With the release of the group’s fifth studio album, the appropriately titled “5SOS5,” 5 Seconds of Summer undergoes a new round of reinvention, bringing a more mature sound and perspective, while breaking the mold of what defines a 5SOS song.

The album’s opener, “COMPLETE MESS,” a mellow reflection on messy relationships, was released as the album’s first single back in March of this year. In the intervening six months, 5SOS engaged fans with a steady stream of teasers, singles, and performances of then-unreleased tracks during the “Take My Hand” World Tour, which took the band across Europe and the Americas from April to July of this year. “BLENDER” became a quick fan favorite after being added to the “Take My Hand” setlist prompting fans to beg for its release, which “5SOS” eventually obliged. On the other hand “Easy For You To Say,” another track teased on tour, was only dropped upon the album’s release — but with odd production decisions and heavy vocal effects used on the chorus, the live performances outshine the recording.

“5SOS5” marks the band's first full-length release since 2020’s “CALM” which included hits “Easier” and “Teeth.” In the two years since, the band has been anything but idle. Irwin, the band’s drummer, became the first member to go solo with his 2020 debut album “Superbloom.” While Hemmings, 5 Seconds of Summer’s lead singer and rhythm guitarist, quickly followed suit with the 2021 release of his album “When Facing the Things We Turn Away From.”

The influence of both projects can be heard within “5SOS5.” Irwin’s exploration of the industrial rock landscape flows into the introspective album closer “TEARS!” While, the idyllic soundscape created for Hemmings’ album is borrowed for the delightfully sappy duet “Older.”

“5SOS5” also departs from 5 Seconds of Summer’s earlier sound by expanding the band’s vocal lineup. On “CALM,” 5SOS was able to shed their boyband image by centering Hemmings as the band’s frontman, providing lead vocals on all but one track on the album. Even with this shifting dynamic, longtime fans will be excited to listen as vocal moments from Clifford, Irwin, and Hood once again find themselves in the spotlight. Fans can also hear a surprise vocal performance on “Older” where Sierra Deaton, Hemmings’ fiance and former member of the X-Factor winning duo Alex & Sierra, sings with Hemmings in a heartwarming duet.

Across the album, 5SOS weaves a thread of nostalgia and reflection, a theme that flows as a natural continuation of “2011,” released last year in celebration of the band’s 10-year anniversary. Two of the best tracks on the album — “Bad Omens” and “Best Friends”— are a natural pairing examining downfalls and the peaks of friendship, respectively. On “Bad Omens” Hemmings laments his tendency to ignore red flags in toxic relationships, singing: “Heaven knows I should let go / It's nothing that I don't already know.” Whereas “Best Friends” presents a joyous and carefree celebration of friendship at its best exclaiming “I got the best friends in this place/ And I'm holdin' on.”

At 19 songs, the album does feel a bit bloated, particularly on the back half where songs like “Redline,” “Moodswings,” and “Flatline” blur together in a haze of falsetto and guitars. Pushing a few songs onto a separate deluxe edition would free up space for some of the better mid-tempo B-sides like “Bleach” and “You Don’t Go to Parties” to set themselves apart rather than getting lost in the mix.

Nevertheless, “5SOS5” is a testament to the growth and musical talent of 5 Seconds of Summer. The album marks the band's first independent release, as well as Clifford’s first go as producer for almost the entire album. While it doesn’t present the same cohesion as “CALM,” “5SOS5” shows off of a mix of surefire hits and experimental feelers, promising further growth and exploration in the band’s future.