{"id":11204,"date":"2018-06-24T16:43:45","date_gmt":"2018-06-24T20:43:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.altwire.net\/?p=11204"},"modified":"2023-12-06T06:40:04","modified_gmt":"2023-12-06T11:40:04","slug":"album-review-5-seconds-of-summer-youngblood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/album-review-5-seconds-of-summer-youngblood\/","title":{"rendered":"[Album Review] 5 Seconds of Summer – Youngblood"},"content":{"rendered":"

Like the Busted<\/strong>\u2019s and Mcfly<\/strong>\u2019s of the early 2000s, 5 secondes d'\u00e9t\u00e9<\/strong>\u2019s sound and style has always been a calculated and consciously safe one. In implementing casual lyricism with playful melodic hooks, the direction taken by the Australian pop-rock quartet ultimately often boiled down to being as easily digestible and mathematically marketable as possible, reaching the intended demographic with ease and (as seen with the group\u2019s previous material) huge success. It may not have been the most in-depth, quality material ever produced, but the band\u2019s undeniably charismatic approach to their material suited their targeted audience enough to keep the wheels turning long after their 2014 debut.<\/p>\n

In approaching the group\u2019s third studio effort, it would be easy enough to assume that Youngblood<\/em> just intends to stand as another proud notch in the bedpost of being a rather generic Top 10 pop-rock record, but the group\u2019s stated intention to at least offer something different can\u2019t help but intrigue slightly. After all, \u201cdifferent\u201d can mean a great many things. And for the sake of artistic integrity, could be worth at least a chance. Take Charlie Simpson<\/strong>\u2019s complete disregard of the former Busted<\/strong> to instead pursue the post-hardcore tones of Fightstar<\/strong>, for example: the group\u2019s sound and style easily proved a huge surprise for those all too familiar with the \u2018Year 3000\u2019, with the group\u2019s latest effort Behind The Devil\u2019s Back<\/em> receiving widespread critical acclaim. As previously stated, \u201cdifferent\u201d can mean a great many things, so what does it mean here?<\/p>\n

Well, compared to the teen heartthrob clich\u00e9s of \u2018She Looks So Perfect\u2019, the most obvious observation to be found when glancing over Youngblood<\/em>\u2019s glossy, perfectly produced assortment of tracks is rather simple: like Busted<\/strong>'s Night Driver<\/em> ou Gar\u00e7on radio-actif<\/strong>'s Mania<\/em>, Youngblood<\/em> voit 5 secondes d'\u00e9t\u00e9<\/strong> eagerly joining the ranks of their many contemporaries currently enjoying the resurgence of synth-pop\/rock.<\/p>\n

Indeed, from the popping, bouncy \u2018Better Man\u2019, to the funky clean guitar riffage of \u2018Want You Back\u2019, Youngblood<\/em> essentially sees 5 secondes d'\u00e9t\u00e9<\/strong>\u2019s usual formula copied-and-pasted into the radio friendly aesthetics of the 80s, and for the most part the results are just as you would assume: the easily digestible lyricism and fun melodic hooks remain, but in joining the party far too late, the uneasy feeling that this might just be a desperate grab for attention and attempt at staying relevant hangs ominously in the air. Of course, let\u2019s not forget that this has<\/em> been a huge part of the band\u2019s prerogative ever since their inception: in borrowing from the likes of Blink-182<\/strong> \u00e0 Mcfly<\/strong>, 5 secondes d'\u00e9t\u00e9<\/strong>\u2019s debut and following record Sounds Good Feels Good<\/em> essentially do everything in their power to relive the clich\u00e9s of the early 2000s boyband pop-rock scene, and in doing so achieved virtually nothing new as a result.<\/p>\n

Youngblood<\/em> shares this agenda, but it est<\/em> worth noting just how close the band sometimes comes to succeeding in offering something more interesting throughout their third studio effort: album opener \u2018Youngblood\u2019 immediately sets the stage with a far moodier vibe compared to the group\u2019s former material, a hint of Ben Howard<\/a><\/strong> ou Ed Sheeran<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s \u2018Bloodstream\u2019 lingering in the background while the track\u2019s thumping, galloping heartbeat of a backbone and snappy instrumentation easily results in one of the group\u2019s best offerings of their career. Elsewhere, \u2018More\u2019 essentially takes a stab at replicating the delightfully fun aesthetics of Jungle<\/strong>\u2019s \u2018Busy Earnin\u2019, while dialing things up to a far bassier level. Considering how eclectic the track actually proves instrumentally, from moody clean guitar arpeggios to huge, thick synthesizers that dominate the choruses, it actually proves a rather fun ride.<\/p>\n

Also taking inspiration from others, \u2018Talk Fast\u2019 takes a Police<\/strong>-inspired route in implementing a clean, Andy Summers<\/strong>-esque guitar riff, before quickly leaping into glittering synthesizers and all manner of catchiness, while \u2018Valentine\u2019 proves itself a near-blatant rip off of \u00c9chosmith<\/strong>\u2019s gorgeous \u2018Over My Head\u2019, albeit slower and (considering there being only a month\u2019s difference in release date between the two) a possible unhappy coincidence.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, despite there being some clear moments where the group steps into more interesting territory, much of Youngblood<\/em> just can\u2019t help but stay rooted in the tried-and-tested clich\u00e9s of old, and ultimately falls rather flat: \u2018Moving Along\u2019 displays a shallow, bored attempt at replicating the group\u2019s former pop-rock hits, while the synth-heavy \u2018Why Won\u2019t You Love Me\u2019 is as dreary and meanderingly dull as its title would imply. Elsewhere, \u2018Ghost of You\u2019 does its best at being the lovesick, gut-wrenching ballad intent on pulling on the heartstrings of the band\u2019s teen heartthrob audience, and while well produced, it\u2019s nothing new compared to the hundreds of other ballads that have already stamped through this extremely familiar ground.<\/p>\n

And in the end, this is exactly where Youngblood<\/em>\u2019s greatest weakness is on full display: familiar ground. As previously mentioned, this is an album that sees the Australian quartet diving right in on an already increasingly over-saturated resurging genre, where there are already some far superior acts making far better use of it. If not the acclaimed upcoming Vagues p\u00e2les<\/a><\/strong>, then look no further than Paramore<\/a><\/strong>'s Apr\u00e8s le rire<\/em>. It can be appreciated when an artist chooses to follow new territory for the sake of artistic integrity, but 5 secondes d'\u00e9t\u00e9<\/strong>\u2019s all-too coincidental decision to join the ever-popular synth-pop ranks of many others in recent years displays, once again, a calculated and mathematically marketable approach to their material. In short: it will sell well and the wheels will keep on turning.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Like the Busted\u2019s and Mcfly\u2019s of the early 2000s, 5 Seconds of Summer\u2019s sound and style has always been a … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":11205,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","transcript_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1552],"class_list":["post-11204","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews","tag-5-seconds-of-summer","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11204","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/75"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11204"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11204\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11205"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11204"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11204"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11204"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}