By: JAEQWON SUAREZ / STAFF REPORTER
5 Seconds of Summer (5SOS) has returned two years after the release of their most recent album “Calm” giving listeners more pop-rock and rock ballads that are sure to put you in your feelings with their newest 19-track album, “5SOS5”
While the album is just about an hour long if you listen straight through, I can promise you that you won’t want to do anything else once you get started.
The album encompasses one major theme: growth and change.
The first song, COMPLETE MESS immediately describes a person who never learns their lesson from somebody that is slowly slipping away from them and how that mentally affects them. In the song, this person is constantly asking themselves questions and doubting themselves to the point that they don’t even feel in control of themselves anymore.
The story of COMPLETE MESS flows into the next song titled, Easy For You To Say, where the lyrics describe a person who starts talking to themselves, trying to explain how they’ll change themselves, but they can’t forget their old ways. This is one of my favorite rock ballads and the chorus is just breathtaking.
My favorite part of the song is when they sing:
This nostalgia in my bones/
Why can’t I forget it?
The struggle to grow and change when it has become so easy to keep old habits is one that most people can relate to. To top it all off, the song has a sudden and abrupt ending which will leave you wanting more.
Bad Omens talks about letting a toxic person go. I really love how this song talks about how, even though the narrator knows they should let the love interest go, they are constantly ignoring all of the red flags that a toxic person can bring.
Throughout the song, they’re talking about crying for that person because they loved them. This is one of those songs where it gets the listeners questioning if it’s really love, or is it just not wanting to be alone.
The choir in the background of this rock-ballad definitely ties it all together, as it might represent multiple people asking this person “is it love?” and “is it worth the pain?”
Continuing to the fourth song, Me Myself & I, that’s where I feel like this person is finally learning how to grow without that toxic person in their life.
While the song lyrics are pessimistic at times, this song gives the listener hope that life can get better.
Take My Hand and CAROUSEL both build to this satisfyingly wonderful beat drop that adds something fresh to the album.
In my mind, both of these songs would go well in a movie soundtrack, with the characters happily driving into a sunset.
My personal favorite from the album will always be Older.
Taking a break from rock ballads this time, this song has only a piano and drums, which adds to the simplicity of the song. Upon my first time hearing it, I immediately fell in love with the vocals and lyrics. This song has easily become so timeless to me that it will always put me in my feelings.
The speed of the next track, HAZE, changes the pace of the album.
The energy of this song encapsulates summer beginning and meeting someone new. That energy is expertly matched with the sound of horns in the background, thus creating a song that can easily be the song of the summer.
The next song, You Don’t Go To Parties, backtracks into rock ballads again but keeps up with the pace of HAZE.
My favorite part of thIS song is the break where the guitar starts going crazy, really capturing the whole genre of rock ballads.
Changing to Pop-rock, BLENDER is sure to be a fan favorite.
The guitars and drums make you want to get up and start an air guitar concert while head banging.
The lyrics immediately capture the ears and the chorus has a rhythm that is undeniably catchy. I was smiling all the way through the end and it made me sad when the song ended so abruptly that I had to immediately replay it.
Caramel has an awesome breakdown with a form of electric guitar that I cannot properly pinpoint and drums that melts into the melody similar to the candy that gives this track its name.
It may seem like a chill and laid back song, but once the beat drops the energy suddenly changes and the song is transformed into rock. The soft ending blends nicely into the next song.
Best Friends and Bleach give us more beautiful vocals over drums.
In particular, Bleach is a lot more raw and has a lot of tension build up that dissipates towards the end of the track as the lyrics give closure to a relationship that has already been ruined.
Red Line and Moodswings are more soft rock with nice soft strings in the background that almost make you feel like you are in a dream of some sort.
The ending to Red Line is particularly hypnotic, especially when it changes key as if you’re waking up from a bad dream.
Moodswings, on the other hand, has soft drums and raw vocals that really feels like it’s ripping the soul of the listener apart. My eyes water every time I hear this song.
Flatline switches back to pop-rock that gives us some memorable lyrics. The chorus is my personal favorite and the repetition in the song really sticks out since it talks about being nervous around the person you like and recognizing how much you have changed.
Emotions reminds me of early 2010s rock-ballads with the lyrics and the strums of the guitar. The message of the song can definitely be felt within its lyrics.
The words I really resonated with were:
Don’t mind me/
I’m just feeling kinda broken/
kinda broken.
Some days can definitely be overwhelming, and with the lyrics of Emotions being so vulnerable detailing how although we want to try rushing to get better, we need time to self heal and focus on ourselves. These words are so poignant, that it is refreshing to hear on an otherwise gritty album.
If you love drums, I can guarantee you Bloodhound is just right for you. This entire song just screams pop-rock, and if you’re not dancing by the end of the song, then you are listening to this song all wrong.
It’s so upbeat that it definitely goes into my top 4: Older, BLENDER, Bloodhound, and TEARS!
The final song of the album, TEARS! Which walks the line between a pop-rock and a rock-ballad, which I love.
The title is also so perfect, because it just matches the entire aesthetic of the album.
There were so many hidden gems in this album that I honestly feel like you could press shuffle and there wouldn’t be a single skip.
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