Since 2011, when the band was formed and quickly propelled to fame while opening for One Direction on their Take Me Home tour in 2012, 5 Seconds of Summer continued to sell out arenas on their Meet You There tour in 2018.
If you have not been following the pop-rock band since they’ve returned to the music scene after three years following the release of “Sounds Good Feels Good” in 2015, you were probably expecting one of their usual rock anthems and “Lie To Me” is not that. However, you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the musicality of this song.
Michael Clifford spoke to Billboard towards the end of 2017 saying ” I think the reason it’s taken so long is because we haven’t just wanted to get it to a place where we’re, like, happy… We want it to be perfect.”
Last year, the wait for new music was finally over. The four friends from Australia grew up, and their music did too. Most recently, the band released their newest music video for the song “Lie To Me” which was teased all the way back in April 2018.
Lie To Me video.
— 5 Seconds of Summer (@5SOS) April 25, 2018
“Lie To Me”, which was released in June 2018 as a part of the band’s third studio album “Youngblood”, is filled with melancholy tones that fit right into an album with a theme revolving around the triumphs and heartaches surrounding relationships.
The Lie To Me music video was released a few days ago and it truly embodies all of those feelings and more in a crisp 3 minutes and 5 seconds.
Lie To Me details a toxic relationship with lyrics like “While I’m cleaning up your mess/I know he’s taking off your dress” and “I know that you don’t, but if I ask you if you love me/I hope you lie, lie, lie, lie, lie to me”.
The video opens on a dark race track with 5SOS frontman Luke Hemmings sitting in the back seat of an old, beat up car. The other members of the band, Michael Clifford, Calum Hood and Ashton Irwin, approach the stadium and take positions in the stands looking at their heartbroken bandmate, unable to help.
What happened next was inevitable, yet painful.
Luke Hemmings, sitting in a car while two others race recklessly around him, subtly explains the feeling of staying in a toxic relationship. He is trapped, in pain and still very much in love. What happened next was inevitable, but it made it all the more tragic.
The song shifts to a more chaotic, upbeat rock that still holds its sombre undertone as Hemmings sings, “And now I wish we never met/’Cause you’re too hard to forget”.
The two cars that have been circling then crash into him and the rest of the video is filled with quick, chaotic shots fitting to the rest of the song.
He is trapped, in pain and very much in love.
The other members of 5SOS illustrate that helpless feeling when there is nothing you can do to stop the torment of someone close to you. The ‘Lie To Me’ music video gives fans both sides of the story.
Ashton Irwin elaborates on the meaning behind the video, tweeting out:
The lie to me Video represents to me when someone closest to you is in a toxic situation, and they take an emotional beating over and over. With no attempt to escape. It’s absolutely heartbreaking.
All you can do is watch.
Happy Thursday. https://t.co/YN8Zdx5jlL pic.twitter.com/nhTrLwn8zD— Ashton Irwin (@Ashton5SOS) January 18, 2019
Listening to only the audio of the song still evokes emotion through the listeners, but watching the video evokes an emotional response similar to that gut-wrenching feeling you get when you are sitting on top of a roller coaster waiting to take that initial dive. The raw emotion brought out by Luke Hemmings’ powerful performance resonates with anyone who has gone through a toxic relationship and difficult break-up.
Featured Image courtesy of Melody VR
