5 Seconds Of Summer Returns With Surprise Single “NOT OK”
Your favorite boy band is back, though calling them a boy band doesn’t quite cut it. 5 Seconds of Summer, aka 5SOS, has been a band that covers a range of genres, including pop, punk, rock, and everything in between. After teasing their return with posters across the globe, the Australian four-piece have officially reemerged, sending fans into a frenzy.
It’s been a minute since their last album, 5SOS5, which was released in September 2022, but the wait is over. The surprise single “NOT OK” is out now, and their sixth studio album Everyone's A Star! is set to be released later this year. Along with the posters, the band launched a new website, yourfavoriteband.com, that prompted a quiz and a mysterious pre-save link. The Instagram account, @thediaryofsix, also started teasing that something exciting was coming.
Photo via yourfavoriteband.com
Formed in Sydney in 2011, Luke Hemmings (lead vocals/guitar), Michael Clifford (lead guitar), Calum Hood (bass), and Ashton Irwin (drums) first rose to fame through their pop-punk roots and with an opening slot for One Direction back in 2013. The band has never shied away from experimenting with different sounds, and this single continues to prove that. 5SOS’s most recent work has been more pop-rock leaning, but they continue to expand sonically, and “NOT OK” leans into an electronic edge.
This new era for 5SOS has caught fans off guard, with many declaring that “punk 5SOS is back.” Hemmings for Official Charts described it as having "the older 5 Seconds of Summer energy, but it's different, which is the whole M.O. of this chapter."
The lead single embodies the shift, featuring distorted vocals over snappy, driving drums. The intro immediately pulls you in, opening with a pulsing electronic beat under Hemmings’ vocals, soon joined by a gritty, repetitive guitar. There’s an eeriness in the warped vocals and electronic touches that sets the darker atmosphere of the song. Clearly pulling inspiration from artists like Gorillaz, the single has a genre-blurring edge.
The pre-chorus strips back the intensity and builds tension, isolating Hemming’s higher-pitched vocals while the heavy guitar and drums drop out. He sings: “I wanna dip my toe into the fire / Where did the good boy go? Killed by desire / On the edge / You make me wanna jump, jump, jump, jump, jump, jump, jump, jump.”
In contrast, the chorus erupts with the full band. Explosive drums and a harder guitar riff kick in, and all four members deliver the anthemic hook: “Hey, I’m not okay / I like the darker side of me, that part of me / Comes out to play when I’m with you, you / Bite the apple, baby.”
It’s loud, catchy, and has everything a comeback single needs. Hemmings explained, “Lyrically, it's about letting out the darker side of yourself and embracing it." “NOT OK” feels like a throwback to 5SOS’s punk roots, while simultaneously breaking new sonic ground.
Photo Via Brian Ziff (Republic Records)
As always, 5SOS has rebranded to match their sonic shift. The band wiped their Instagram clean and reintroduced themselves with a grunge-inspired, punk-leaning aesthetic. Hemmings is rocking bleached, spiked hair, while Clifford’s is an electric red. With smudged eyeliner, oversized outfits, and edgy accessories, their new style mirrors the mood of the record.
One of 5SOS’s strengths has always been their shared vocals, and “NOT OK” highlights each member. Hood takes the third verse, Irwin leads the interlude, and Clifford drives the final chorus, adding more dimension to the track. While the single has electronic elements, the band stayed true to their pop-rock sound with a rich guitar solo after the interlude.
The band played a pop-up show in West Hollywood last night, debuting the new single live. Pulling up in a pink limo, 5SOS handed out matching hot pink t-shirts that read “Your Favorite Boy Band.” Alongside the new track, they performed album cuts including “Star,” “Boyband,” “No. 1 Obsession,” and “Telephone Busy.” Of course, they also played fan-favorite classics.
Overall, the track embodies a kind of controlled chaos, pushing 5SOS into uncharted territory once again. Clifford for Rolling Stone stated, “I’m so proud to be a part of a band that’s able to do stuff that’s scary…I think that’s the thing that’s most exciting about the next 5SOS record – nobody has a fucking clue.” This bold new era of 5SOS has fans buzzing with anticipation for the full album and hopefully, an accompanying tour.
Listen to 5 Seconds of Summer’s new single, NOT OK, off of their sixth studio album, Everybody’s A Star, out November 14th.
Check out the tracklist below:
1. Everyone's A Star!
2. NOT OK
3. Telephone Busy
4. Boyband
5. No. 1 Obsession
6. I'm Scared I'll Never Sleep
7. istillfeelthesame
8. Ghost
9. Sick of Myself
10. Evolve
11. The Rocks
12. Jawbreaker
