Pushing the boundaries of what a boyband is and what it is supposed to sound and look like – both in a visual and musical sense – 5 Seconds Of Summer’s sixth album ‘Everyone’s A Star!’ sees the Australian quartet dissect their journey from American Apparel underwear-wearing teenage heartthrobs to fathers trying to come to terms and play with the complex themes of their past.
From an instrumental standpoint, there’s a lot of fun to be had with the band’s latest record, with bright streaks of modern rock and hyper-pop, as well as funk surprises and some nostalgic, disco-y synth lines being embedded in the LP’s twelve tracks. While all four members – lead singer Luke Hemmings, lead guitarist Michael Clifford, bassist Calum Hood, and drummer Ashton Irwin – get to have their moments in the vocal booth, it’s specifically singer Hemmings who gets to put his broad, punk-leaning vocal talents on show with full force, on songs such as ‘I’m Scared I’ll Never Sleep Again’, the vibey ‘istillfeelthesame’ and the heartfelt ‘Ghost’, the latter serving as the most held back moment on the album.
When it comes to the themes of the group’s project, it almost seems like there is a metronome hidden within the threads of it all, continuously swinging back and forth between the topic of personal relationships and the tribulations and ups and downs of them, and the artists’ reflections of their beginnings as a band which got thrust into the spotlight at a very young age, with millions of eyes suddenly watching their every step. It’s songs like ‘No.1 Obsession’ and ‘Boyband’ that further drive that narrative, with lyrics such as “Make me the flavor of the week / Now I only feel alive when you’re looking at me / I’m your favorite / Boy in a boyband, imaginary boyfriend”.
Big, bold, colourful, and coming with loud outfits, plastic doll boxes turned into stage builds, and a global campaign that has taken over the internet, 5SOS’ newest album meets the established four-piece at their most grown-up, sonically distinct and yet still playful era yet and offers their fans a peek behind the sparkly curtain of boyband stardom and why it might actually not always be as shiny and golden as we’d think.
Written by Laura Weingrill
GEM Magazine 