Published by Mason Oldridge, 17 September 2022
Aussie pop rock band 5 Seconds of Summer are back with their fifth release, offering up easy listening but nothing ground-breaking.
The album opens with strong energy in its lead single Complete Mess. This attribute can be found elsewhere throughout the tracklist as Me, Myself & I is a catchy tune and Blender is a particularly fun song set to a fast pace.
There are also some more emotional and calmer tracks embedded among the collection as there is some melodic falsetto on Easy for You to Say and a slow tempo on Older, a sweet duet with Sierra Deaton on the fears of growing up.
Furthermore, there’s some intriguing sounds to be heard on the likes of Haze and Caramel, the latter of which is somewhat dreamy.
Despite these positives, the album feels overloaded, as if there are too many tracks that don’t all hold up on their own with enough individualism, falling fowl to a common trap in the industry. A more condensed record would work better as too many fade into the background as unmemorable. This should not take any credit away, however, from the stronger tracks, which do offer some merit.
6/10