5 Seconds of Summer – OVO Hydro:  – SEC Armadillo Glasgow: The Boyband Trying To Grow Up 

A lot has changed since 5 Seconds of Summer exploded out of YouTube and onto the music scene all those years ago.

Back then, the Australian group distanced themselves from the boyband tag they were given as they supported One Direction on tour.

Nowadays, they’re running smack bang into that label, with a concert spliced with excerpts from a mockumentary on the very topic.

Visually, they’re quite removed from the tight vests and fancy hairdos you’d associate with the genre. They turned up to the Hydro in kilts, chains and thanks to bass player Calum Hood’s heritage, one of those pink Scotland away tops Steve Clarke’s players will be wearing at the World Cup.

They look like a cosplay Fontaines D.C. and at times, sound like the finest pop-punk of My Chemical Romance.

They’re experts when it comes to putting on a show, too. The new material from latest album Everyone’s a Star! roars at you at a ferocious pace. While older hits you’ve probably heard on commercial radio stations like ‘Youngblood’ and ‘She Looks So Perfect’ shake the venue to its core.

It’s not just the tunes that impress. They talk fondly of Ashton Lane, perform on an extended stage to get closer to their adoring public, and have giant pink balls bouncing about the crowd, one that they work like experts.

A couple of numbers stray a bit too close to Thirty Seconds to Mars territory. The type of songs that feel designed purely to be used in adverts.

And despite being rockier than the likes of Blue or A1 would ever be, there’s no denying that, now and again, some of the material feels like it came off a conveyor belt.

Before the band made their entrance, I stood at the side as Depeche Mode’s ‘Enjoy the Silence’ played over the PA. I was hoping to share a knowing nod with anyone else in the standing area who was alive when it was first released, and praying I could get a signal on my phone to keep me entertained throughout the show. 

As it drew to a close, I was on my mobile again. This time checking whether me and my youngest would make the last train home.

It’s not every day the self-proclaimed, self-deprecating ‘Biggest Boyband in the World’ rolls into town.

Photo credit: Cameron Brisbane