5 Seconds Of Summer outgrow their teen pop roots

Still going strong after more than a decade, former teen pop band 5 Seconds Of Summer have outlasted many of their peers.

It is their friendship that keeps the Australian group alive and maintaining that bond takes work, says singer and bassist Calum Hood.

"We take a lot of time to learn about each other," the 26-year-old says in a Zoom interview. "A lot of our job is making sure that everyone in the band feels like they play a pivotal role within the band, which they do.

"So I think the main thing is to be selfless in your friendship and with your bandmates."

The quartet, which also comprise singer-drummer Ashton Irwin and singer-guitarists Luke Hemmings and Michael Clifford, made a return recently with new songs Complete Mess and Take My Hand.

The two tracks are from their as-yet-untitled fifth album.

The quartet, who are based in Los Angeles, decided to escape the city and headed to the desert in Joshua Tree National Park for inspiration, following in the steps of iconic rock bands such as U2, Foo Fighters and Arctic Monkeys.

Irwin, 27, says in the same interview: "We also just wanted to chill out. We were living in Los Angeles during the pandemic and that was pretty stressful, so we really needed some time away.

"And, yeah, so we went out and explored concepts, explored individual relationships and tried to see eye to eye on the direction for a new album."

The result were songs that were a far cry from their early pop hits, music that Irwin describes as "having a youthful spirit with some kind of poetic rock edge".

Complete Mess, released early last month, was also the first song they wrote and produced themselves, with Clifford handling the production.

Hood says it was a significant move as the band are always thinking ahead and trying to improve their craft.

"We really believe that would be a great way to kind of open doors for this band in terms of what we're capable of, always just trying to push the boundaries in no matter what kind of field within music."

They are inspired by the success of American rock bands such as The Killers and Kings Of Leon, as well as fellow Australian act Tame Impala.

Says Irwin: "We try to create music where we can have our own identity and headline with bands like that. Not because we want what they have, but because we're curious to see if we can get there on our own accord, with our own lyrics, chord structures, stories and we do believe it's doable."

Formed in 2011, the four former schoolmates made their name through global hits such as She Looks So Perfect (2014) and Youngblood (2018).

They are the only band to have their first three albums enter the Billboard charts at No. 1, and have amassed accolades such as four Aria awards, the Australian equivalent of the Grammys.

More than just an all-singing boy band, they stood out by playing their own music instruments.

Last year, the band celebrated their decade together by releasing a track, 2011, as well as a series of videos on YouTube that looked back at their last 10 years together.

If there is one thing that has not changed for them, it is the sense of wonder that they still feel about playing music.

Sitting at his drum kit on stage, Irwin says he can see how much his bandmates love performing with one another.

"The way the guys smile at each other on stage and the way they interact with each other is not very different at all. I think it's almost identical to how it started out, you know?

"I still say they look at each other and go 'Dang, how did this all happen?' And that's really cool. That's a cool perspective."

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• Complete Mess and Take My Hand by 5 Seconds Of Summer are available on streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music.