5 Seconds Of Summer: The 5SOS Show

5 SECONDS OF SUMMER: THE 5SOS SHOW TOUR

04.10.2023 @ AO Arena, Manchester (21,000 Capacity)

Written Oct 2023

I've wanted to see 5SOS for a while now. As with many artists, I started listening to them properly in the pandemic, having heard several of their songs beforehand. I went back and listened to their whole discography which made me able to see their progression in its entirety, especially their subtle changes to shift genres slightly with each album but still stay true to their roots. The first release I was a fan of the band for was that of their newest album '5SOS5' which saw them venture into the pop-alternative genre but listening back, it's clear that they still pull on their rock influences within certain tracks. 

I bought these tickets back in April, when tickets first went on sale & looked forward to it for a long time. It was my first Arena gig since 2018 & we were up in the lower bowl as close to the stage as you could be from the side, meaning we could see both the stage & the steps the band came onto the stage from.

We got there just in time to see the openers. Charlotte Sands (who ami is a big fan of) was up first & performed amazingly - I was blown away. The crowd really got into it (as they should've) & we were able to hear an unreleased track as well as her newest songs. The second opener was a pop duo called ar/co who were unexpected but delightful anyway with their psychedelic, electronic pop sounds.

When 5SOS came on, they played songs from every single one of their albums as well as some other singles, which was super fun considering I'd never seen them live before this. Similarly to the whole concept of surprise songs at concerts (introduced by Taylor Swift at the Eras tour), the boys have a dice song. Their huge inflatable dice is thrown into the crowd & they then have 90 seconds to throw it around & get it back on stage. Each side has a song from the band's debut era, songs they don't play anymore, so everyone on there is wanted. I think the crowd wanted 'English love affair', a song wanted by the UK crowds in general but in the end, it landed on 'Voodoo Doll', one of my favourite of the deluxe tracks off the debut album.

Another segment of the show was 'Ashton VS You' where the crowd battled the band's drummer (Ashton Irwin) to see who could be louder - although I think it's kind of cheating cause the sound guys at the back could've just turned up the speakers for all we know. I loved how this incorporated a song off of 'Youngblood' because the drums in it are just *chefs kiss* amazing so hearing them isolated was incredible. 

Additionally, the band tied the show together with pre-recorded skits that played on the side stage screens which kept the crowd excited & also gave the band a moment's reprieve throughout the show, which was no doubt tiring given how energetic everyone was. A random thing I noticed from our angle of the stage is how both Luke & Michael switched out their guitars for several others throughout the show. I assume Luke was switching between a rhythm & normal electric guitar but Michael switched to an acoustic for 'Amnesia'.

The last time 5SOS played this venue was back in 2015, when they opened for One Direction on the ‘On the road again’ tour. Since this is their last tour for a little while, the night genuinely might be a once-in-a-lifetime experience (although I hope it’s not!) I think everyone there can agree, it was an unbelievable night and I’ll be looking over my videos forever.