STACK #248 June 2025

FEATURE MUSIC

NEW ORDER E leven years after the first 5 Seconds of Summer album, bass player Calum Hood is releasing his debut solo album. The obvious question is: What took him so long? 5 Seconds of Summer’s Calum Hood steps out with his first solo set.

HOT COLLAB

“That’s a great question,” Calum smiles. “Before I even put my foot in the door, I wanted to make sure that I really wanted to do it, that I was doing it for the right reasons.” In the lead-up to the release, Calum admitted to Triple J that he found the process “absolutely terrifying”.

Calum Hood

ORDER chaos ORDER by Calum Hood is out Jun 13 via Universal

Photo credit: Sarah Eiseman

Calum Hood wrote the album’s first single, Don’t Forget You Love Me , with Jack LaFrantz, who co-wrote much of Benson Boone’s first two albums.

SISTER ACT Calum Hood’s sister Mali-Koa is also a singer and songwriter. She appeared on the first Australian season of The Voice and released her debut album, Hunger , in 2020. She’s now part of the electro duo AR/CO.

5SOLO Calum Hood was the last 5SOS member to announce a solo project. Drummer Ashton Irwin issued Superbloom in 2020. Singer Luke Hemmings released When Facing the Things We Turn Away From in 2021, and guitarist Michael Clifford recently revealed his debut solo album Sidequest .

“Going from something you do with three other people to spearheading it yourself was incredibly

daunting. But for me there was a point where I just had to let go of any kind of preconceived notion of what I wanted it to be. It just needs to be whatever it will be.” Explaining the title, Calum says: “This album was made in a tumble dryer of knowing and not knowing. I started out with a vision – order – but quickly became overwhelmed by the process – chaos. “Eventually, I learned to embrace both, and that balance became the heart of the record.” Jeff Jenkins BOONE COMPANION Benson Boone gets to the heart of the matter on his second album. CHART FACT

5SOS have released five studio albums. All of them have topped the Australian charts, and the first three albums hit number one in the US.

Benson Boone

T here’s more to Benson Boone than just Beautiful Things . His second album shows his growth as an artist. “A lot of it is very Bruce Springsteen, Americana, like a little more of a retro vibe,” he explains. And just like Springsteen’s blockbuster Born in the U.S.A , the album cover shows the artist in front of the American flag – with his six-pack on show. But Benson – who

a hunky heartthrob (Benson Swoon, to many fans). “I don’t want people to come to a show expecting me to just take my shirt off and it to be like a gun show,” he told Rolling Stone . “One, I don’t have the guns for that. Two, that’s just not what I’m about… I don’t want to rely on my physical form to be the primary driver of my shows. “I can’t be the sex icon of the century, just because that’s not who I am.” Speaking of physical, there’s an Aussie link to American Heart – the chorus of the album’s second single, Mystical Magical , is a tribute to Olivia Newton-John’s Physical . Jeff Jenkins

American

Heart by Benson Boone is out Jun 20 via Inertia

FUN FACT

CHART FACT

MAY DAY Benson Boone was buzzing when he was joined by Brian May at Coachella to perform Bohemian Rhapsody . The Queen legend called Benson “a truly golden 22-year-old prodigy”.

Benson Boone auditioned for American Idol in 2021. He won a place in the Top 24 before deciding to voluntarily leave.

refers to himself as “Benny” in the album’s first single, Sorry I’m Here for

Benson Boone’s Beautiful Things spent six weeks at number one in Australia in 2024 to become the year’s biggest single.

Someone Else – is keen to highlight that he’s not

GRAMMY WATCH

Benson Boone was nominated for ‘Best New Artist’ at this year’s Grammys. The award went to Chappell Roan.

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