LONDON, UK – You thought they peaked with 5SOS5? Think again. Chart-topping alt-pop rock heavyweights 5 Seconds of Summer have not just returned—they’ve set the entire scene ablaze. This isn't just another album; it's a scintillating, solid masterpiece about growth and reasserting identity after more than a decade in the spotlight. To think they’d top 5SOS5 is crazy, but honestly, we think they just did.
The premise is brilliant, light flashes, paparazzi, glitter falling—5SOS invites us on an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at the music industry and the hollowness of celebrity culture. For years, the band resisted the "boyband" label. Now, they’re playfully embracing it with slogans like "Your favourite boyband is back!" but only to dissect the "star" character the world demands, revealing the darker impulses and loneliness that come with it. This isn't the passion they started with; it's the passion they reclaimed. Their recent solo careers and experiences with parenthood (especially for Luke and Michael) have brought a renewed creativity, injecting the raw audacity of their debut with a vital, mature perspective.
From the moment you drop the needle, the title track "Everyone’s A Star!" grabs you. It's the perfect introduction to the theme, contrasting the artificial glow of "living in the glitter, baby I don’t feel a thing" with a desperate plea for genuine human connection "Take me in your arms" to break through the numbness. It’s a powerful opening that immediately establishes the album's tension between the public persona and the private self. The record then plunges into its darkest themes. "NOT OK" comes burning in, a celebration of toxic attraction and losing control. It's a direct nod to the "shadow side" of personality, complete with the biblical "Bite the apple, baby," reference. The pulsating, drum n bass electronic nature is undeniable, giving it a chaotic energy reminiscent of Prodigy’s "Firestarter." This anxiety continues on "Telephone Busy," a perfect portrait of post-breakup self-sabotage, obsessively calling an ex only to be driven crazy by the busy signal, all while pulling tarot cards and trying (and failing) to move on.
But the album's cynical thesis is "Boyband." This is a sharp, self-aware anthem about finally embracing the label that "irritates the metal heads." It’s a brilliant commentary on the transactional nature of fame, where they must perform on command like circus animals—captured in the brutal line, "Make that monkey dance." The genius is in the vulnerable admission that follows: "Now I only feel alive / When you're looking at me." It's an absurd performance, but one they've become dependent on for validation. It’s 5SOS saying, “You want a boy band? Fine. We'll be the best boy band you've ever seen, but we're going to point out how absurd the entire concept is while we do it."
The album's pop-punk rock aggression then begins to soften, pivoting into its brilliant, vulnerable core. It starts with the intense, yearning "No.1 Obsession," a track that’s less about simple love and more about a raw, desperate desire to be the sole focus of someone's world. The lyrics "take me to heaven, kill the depression, make me your number one obsession" are a plea for validation that feels almost dangerous, directly linking the emptiness of the "Boyband" persona to a need for singular, all-consuming affection. (Luke Hemmings? Yes please, any day.) This new mood slides perfectly into the shimmering, 1975-esque vibe of "I’m Scared I’ll Never Sleep Again." Sonically, it’s a beautiful link to 5SOS5 and Luke’s solo work, but lyrically, it’s a nightmare. The singer is stuck alone, consumed by a regret so deep "That was my fault," "Wasn't so drunk" that it manifests as a post-breakup anxiety so severe it feels like permanent insomnia, fuelled by the obsessive memory of the person they lost.
This panic continues on the pop-punk joy gem "istillfeelthesame," where the core conflict is a brutal one: sensing a partner has already moved on emotionally. The line "I still feel the same / Your heart's beating different" is a gut punch, an acute awareness that the connection is broken "I felt you slip away" even if nothing has been said. The track then becomes a desperate plea for their lover to prove them wrong—"Show me nothing's changed" and "Kiss me like you mean it" are a last-ditch effort to feel the old connection, as the anxiety of the failing relationship spirals into pure panic: "Got no sleep, my eyes are bleeding / Everything is losing meaning." This theme of shared brokenness peaks on "Ghost," which explores a terrifying relationship based on shared inner demons. The song's deepest fear is revealed in the bridge: "I can't look you in the eyes / 'Cause I'm afraid it looks like me." It’s a stunningly honest confrontation, which pairs perfectly with the powerful confession of extreme self-loathing in "Sick Of Myself."
The growth, however, is most evident on the shimmering inferno, "EVOLVE." The beat and chorus are infectious, but the premise is one of painful immaturity and a desperate, last-minute realisation: "I know that I lost all / Lost all control... To la la la la love you, I got to evolve." The singer finally understands they must mature from a "monkey" into a "man" to be capable of real love. It even features a strange, scientific spoken-word bridge about girls' brains maturing faster—a quirky, desperate excuse that just reinforces the main point: he knows he's behind and needs to change. After the full journey—including stellar bonus tracks like "Start Over" and the Mikky Ekko-esque "I’ll Find You"—it's clear this is a major sonic and thematic leap.
5SOS has taken full creative control to make music that feels entirely authentic to who they are now. They will always be one of our favourite bands. We actually just missed out on securing an EXCLUSIVE ODDWAX collab for this slab with Ben and the team, but there’s always next time.
This is absolutely worth owning on WAX. We think they just did top 5SOS5. We give it 5/5 ODDSPINS, and honestly, we're not surprised. An absolute solid masterpiece; each song is a hook.
