Back in 2014 when
5 Seconds of Summer were a punky boy-band upstart opening for
One Direction, the Australian quartet's name evoked a sun-soaked blast of irreverent teen giddiness -- like cranking
Green Day's
Dookie out of your car's speakers on the final trip to the beach with your friends before school started. As they've matured and embraced more elements of contemporary pop and electronic dance music, the group's name has felt more akin to spending languid days in one's room or walking the beach alone after a rough breakup. It's a particularly ruminative and introspective vibe they sink into on their streamlined fifth album, 2022's wryly titled
5SOS5. Gone are the crunchy electric guitars and snarky, nose-ringed sassiness that marked early hits like "She's Kinda Hot." Instead, the band craft sad romantic anthems built on shimmering synths, pulsing beats, and, in the case of the lead-off track "Complete Mess," a warmly arpeggiated bassline and R&B-esque fingersnaps over which singer
Luke Hemmings croons about heartbreak and the fleeting evanescence of Heaven. Much of the album brings to mind
the Weeknd's distinctive brand of atmospheric pop -- songs shot through with a yearning, after-hours regret and spiritual modern-rock uplift. Interestingly, while never explicitly addressing religion, cuts like "Me Myself & I," "Take My Hand," and "Bad Omens," conjure an emotional midway point between songs about faith and songs about relationships. There are also some nice hooks here, and tracks like the gothy, electro-inspired "You Don't Go to Parties" and the shoegaze-leaning "Haze" reveal the group's continued interest in mining '90s alt-rock sounds. ~ Matt Collar