Lead guitarist Michael Clifford handled production duties for the single

5 Seconds of Summer are back for the first time in two years with their new single, “Complete Mess,” from the Australian outfit’s upcoming fifth studio album, which will be released independently in partnership with BMG following the group’s departure from Interscope. The track is accompanied by a surrealist music video directed by Lauren Dunn, with creative direction by Tyler Serebreni.

According to a release, “Complete Mess,” was created during a writing trip in Joshua Tree, Calif. It’s the first song to be entirely written and produced by the band, with lead guitarist Michael Clifford handling production duties. The song was recorded over several sessions at Rancho V in Joshua Tree, Clifford’s own home studio and Dragonfly Creek in Malibu.

“For this record, we realized if you want something done that truly represents how you feel, you’ve got to do it yourselves,” the band said in a statement. “We wanted that expansive sound that we naturally gravitate towards when we play together, so we had to learn how to record that. This new music is so authentically us. It’s exactly the kind of music we want to be making right now and it’s a good song to be able to reconnect to our fans after such a long time of not releasing music. We can’t wait for everyone to hear what we’ve been working on.”

The group’s last album, Calm, arrived in March 2020.

5 Seconds of Summer will kick off a 2022 World Tour this summer,  with the North American run beginning June 11 in Vancouver, BC, before wrapping in St. Louis, Mo. on July 24. Tickets are available now.

There is no question that Clipse’s Let God Sort Em Out made a serious impact and continues to hold weight. The project showed that hip hop is not limited by age and proved that a long-awaited return can still land in a major way regardless of the time away.

If you need a reminder, the Virginia duo’s fourth studio album debuted comfortably within the top five of the Hot 200. It secured the number four position and moved an impressive 118,000 units in its first week.

On top of that, it picked up a win at this year’s Grammys, earning Best Rap Performance for “Chains & Whips.” The album also received four additional nominations, including Best Music Video, Rap Album, and Album of the Year.

It is hard to believe the project will officially hit its one year mark this summer on July 11. Even so, Pusha T is making it clear that both supporters and critics should not be overlooking it anytime soon.

While performing at Coachella yesterday, King Push told the crowd that LGSEO still sits at the top, regardless of genre.

He said, “‘Let God Sort Em Out’ is still the album of the motherfckin year. Whole new year, still album of the year,” per Kurrco. “Album of the motherfcking year until we drop again. We don't care who dropping. It don't matter.”

That is a strong statement for obvious reasons, especially considering the recent claims surrounding Push himself.

Over the same weekend, hip hop social media lit up after several alleged reference tracks connected to Quentin Miller and Push began circulating. Three tracks surfaced in total, but one that drew the most attention was an alleged record titled “Real Gon’ Come.” It is said to come from the DAYTONA era, around 2017 to 2018.

The situation gained traction because fans remember the past tension between Drake and Pusha T before Drake’s clash with Kendrick Lamar. During that feud, Pusha accused Drake of using ghostwriters on tracks like “Infrared,” which appears on DAYTONA. On that song, he raps, “The bigger question is how the Russians did it /
It was written like Nas, but it came from Quentin.”

Reactions have been mixed. Some people argue it is not a major issue since Miller’s alleged contributions were limited to hooks. Others point out that the songs were never officially released, so they see no real problem. Meanwhile, critics view it as clear hypocrisy on Pusha T’s part, a perspective that DJ Akademiks has also supported.

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