On their forthcoming Interscope Records debut, 5 Seconds of Summer turn a lifetime of musical passion into their most thrillingly ambitious work to date. Hailing from the outskirts of Sydney, the band got their start forging a sound that brought pure punk energy to pop music. Within just a few years they became a global phenomenon, then defied all expectation by adding an industrial-inspired edge to their third album Youngblood. Now, with their fourth full-length, 5SOS push into even bolder sonic terrain, realizing their vision with more impact and intensity than ever before.
The follow-up to Youngblood—a 2018 release that made them the only band in Billboard 200 history to see its first three studio albums debut at No. 1—5SOS’s latest album came to life in collaboration with producer Andrew Watt (Post Malone, Camila Cabello). “Andrew is basically the fifth member of our band,” says Hemmings. “He loves rock & roll to the core, and he’s a great innovator in terms of bringing that into pop.” In a departure from their previous work, much of the album stemmed from 5SOS spending hours holed up in Watt’s studio (a former home of Charlie Chaplin’s), working songs out live in a windowless space Clifford describes as “really dark and extremely sweaty.” As a result, the album bears a gritty vitality, even as it shines with 5SOS’s immaculate melodies and crystal-clear harmonizing.
Sparked from a demo co-created by Charlie Puth, OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder, Louis Bell (Post Malone, Camila Cabello, Halsey) and Ali Tamposi (Beyonce, Camila Cabello, Demi Lovato), lead single “Easier” brings that dynamic to a graceful collision of atmospheric guitar tones, radiant vocal work, and darkly propulsive beats—an element shaped by the band’s recent experimentations in electronic music. “Andrew gave me the freedom and space to play with all these different sounds with the synth and keys, which ended up being a huge anchor for the album,” says Hood, who names noise-rock bands like HEALTH among his inspirations. “I feel like I learned a lot about juxtaposing shades of light and dark, and it created a new contrast within our music.”