5 Seconds of Summer are about to take the stage at their second Sydney show of the year. This time, though, they’ve swapped the glamorous production for a smaller stage built from a set of decks and shipping containers. The Roundhouse holds 2,000 people, compared with the 14,000 screaming fans the night before, so the room feels far more intimate.
CLUBSOS Sydney has an extra layer of exclusivity because it’s an invite-only event for the band’s top Spotify listeners. Nobody knows exactly what percentage or how many listening hours it takes to make the cut. Still, knowing the venue is full of superfans who will scream every lyric makes it feel like a party you’ve been invited to, not a concert you’re watching. The band drops their CLUBSOS VOL. 1 EP that same day. The first CLUBSOS event, an afterparty for their Lollapalooza appearance earlier this year, came with surprises, and tonight has a few of its own. It’s a hometown show, after all.
The venue isn’t announced to fans until 3pm on the day, but that doesn’t stop the diehards. Some work it out by process of elimination, and queues are soon snaking along the footpath.
Once the doors open, an eager sea of people storms the floor, hoping to get a barricade spot. From the VIP section, I can see countless Halloween costumes, including plenty of 5SOS-inspired looks. A group of superheroes referencing the band’s 2014 “Don’t Stop” music video seems to be a fan favourite. It’s also hard to miss the many Luke Hemmings tributes to his “Boyband” era, complete with spiked hair and speed-dealer sunglasses.
The opener, DJ Mowgli May, plays tracks that feel like they’re straight out of my own Spotify playlists. As fans tune in, the anticipation builds to remixes of PinkPantheress, Adéla and Charli xcx. I drop $80 on CLUBSOS merch and feel the buzz around me.
In true 5 Seconds of Summer fashion, the boys are running late. At 9:20pm, the lights begin to dim. 5SOS make their entrance with a nod to The Matrix, re-enacting the “red pill” scene. They’re dressed all in black, with long leather trench coats, slicked-back hair and blacked-out sunglasses to sell the look. If I’m being honest, it isn’t that different from what they usually wear on stage.
The band opens with a remix of “EVERYONE’S A STAR!” as they make their way to a setup lined with red cups, ready for a good time. Next come tracks from their last three albums, 5SOS5, CALM and Youngblood. Fans are clearly happy to hear them, because these songs rarely make the setlist on the main tour, where they’re sidelined in favour of older material. Other deep cuts include “Chest”, “When You Walk Away” and the Simlish version of “Want You Back”. Before long, the band has borrowed a set of Plumbob headbands from fans on the barricade.
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As the night goes on, it gets harder to keep track of where each band member is. Ashton dances in the crowd, then makes his way through to the pit on stage to a remix of “She’s Kinda Hot” and Kesha’s “TiK ToK”. Somehow they’ve also got hold of a smoke cannon, and they blast it into the air, across the stage and even at the front row.
It feels like an actual nightclub. Michael takes most of the reins on the decks, and at one point announces he wants to “try something” before playing a remix that combines 50 Cent’s “P.I.M.P.” with their hit single “She Looks So Perfect”. Other mainstream acts that make the remix cut include Britney Spears, KATSEYE and Sabrina Carpenter, whose “House Tour” is paired with the band’s own “Wildflower”, a song they haven’t played live since their 2022 tour. The floor shakes when a remix of The Dare’s “Girls” transitions into “Girls Talk Boys”. The smell of nicotine fills the air as Calum lights a cigarette on stage. You can imagine the reaction when they play “Telephone Busy” alongside Harry Styles’ “Ready, Steady, Go!”, a nod to the viral TikTok trend of their song turning up at Style’s shows.
A good chunk of the set seems deliberately curated to spotlight Australian acts, with the band proudly backing their peers on home soil. There’s Troye Sivan, whom Luke shouts out as “my boy”, plus Kylie Minogue, Ninajirachi and a particularly Australian spin on “She Looks So Perfect”. Yes, that’s a second remix of it after the 50 Cent one, and this time it’s mashed up with The Chats’ “Smoko”. You can take the boys out of Australia, but you’ll never take Australia out of the boys.
They close with a remix of “Evolve”, which is on the CLUBSOS VOL. 1 EP. It feels like a night to remember, for the band as much as for the fans.
International fans hoping for their own night out partying with their favourite boyband may not have long to wait. In an upcoming exclusive interview with Rolling Stone Australia, Ashton teases the possibility of “taking CLUBSOS out there” in 2027 (keep your eye on the website this week).
Let’s see if they keep their word.
