Musical Analysis of "CAROUSEL" by 5 Seconds of Summer

     5 Seconds of Summer is an Australian Pop-Rock band, that became wildly popular in the 2010's. As their name suggests, their music features many reminiscent themes, often exploring themes that involve embracing mistakes or persevering through challenges. These relatable topics are what drew me to their music, as it comes across in a very relatable yet exciting way. When I first heard CAROUSEL, the overall energy of the song immediately grabbed my attention as it was so wonderfully exhilarating, but then the message began to sink in as I started see my own challenges in the encounters they described. The purpose of the song was to demonstrate the constant loop of overcoming challenges that define living, and the question of why we continue despite the fact that we know another problem is going to arise. The music itself is the answer because it demonstrates that these obstacles are ultimately what make life so entertaining. It's the reason that I can listen to a song that is lyrically so downtrodden and find joy because the unspoken essence of the song is that we find gratification in becoming stronger with each trial as we succeed. This process of growth is what inspires the human spirit and influences us to face more problems so that we can continue to better ourselves. The song was released in 2022, and part of its beauty is that it the band, Ashton Irwin, Calum Hood, Luke Hemmings (with help from his wife Sierra Deaton) and Michael Clifford, came together to write and compose CAROUSEL.

Outside Accounts of the Development of 5 Seconds of Summer

    The purpose of this album is to encourage listeners to be introspective and examine what drives them and how meaningful it is in the spectrum of life. It is a more mature ideology than the band has presented before, and it is a unique album with its deep insights into the cycles and stages of life. The Rolling Stone Australia acknowledges this shift in, "The themes that run through 5SOS5 expand the band’s ethos to explore concepts like mateship, unity, and growth. It also acts as their way of processing love (Clifford got married in January, Hemmings announced his engagement last June), and loss (Hood and Irwin both went through breakups)" (Reid). CAROUSEL demonstrates the fulfillment that comes from both the love and loss depicted in the album as they both present unique challenges that encourage listeners to press on to reap the benefits of living despite the struggles. The song emphasizes how every experience comes with toils and advantages that serve to lead us to where and who we need to be. Hemmings addresses reaching this point in the article by saying, "We're all in such a better, different plane than we were on the last album, and you can hear that musically in the lyrics and aesthetically, it's all sort of a bit... I don't like to say this, but a bit freer." Here he acknowledges that they are at a point in life where they have found peace in their tribulations, and that they have come so far from their prior stand point that expressed anger and grief at the troubles they had endured. This transformation is further observed by The Harvard Crimson, who recognize the bands development with this album by in "With the release of the group's fifth studio album, the appropriately titled "5SOS5", 5 Seconds of Summer undergoes a new round of reinvention, bringing a more mature sound and perspective, while breaking the mold of what defines a 5SOS song" (Hughes). This album was intended to create the statement that the band was no longer the group of teenagers that had founded it, but now was comprised of seasoned musicians who had faced numerous challenges but found joy in life regardless. They acknowledge several mistakes that they made throughout the album, but they recount the joy and peace that they have found as a result throughout each recollection. This culminates in CAROUSEL as it demonstrates the benefits of hindsight and how they have found a way to be grateful for the mistakes that put them in such good standing. The band has seen success with this album through several hits that continue to circulate the radio three years later, but one masterpiece that goes overlooked and under appreciated is CAROUSEL for its insightful use of dynamics, lyrics, range, pitch, and timbre.

Dynamics

    The band has long experimented with volume as they leaned into rock influences for their earlier albums, and many of their larger hits include swells of music that hold a consistent energy. In their new era, this has started to subside to make its occurrence more profound. For instance, in CAROUSEL, they feature a subtle introduction with a soft voice, but as the song progresses and the singer begins to reflect on their experiences the song bolsters. This pattern continues as the chorus ends and a short verse set in as the overall volume recedes, but then again for the next chorus they come back louder and stronger. This constant rotation is a metaphor for life and a constant reminder that after every moment of peace there will be calamity, but in a moment of calamity it encourages the listener that amity will return. This is meant to reflect the implication that life is more than the challenges we face, and that the purpose of living is to find happiness again. The joyous aesthetically blended music is intended to demonstrate that even when our environments begin to spiral there is a distinct pleasure that can be drawn from it, so there is joy to be found no matter which stage you are in.

Lyrics

    Their musical prowess does not wane after dynamics though, their lyrical work exceeds any of their previous songs. The focus of this song is centered on the use of a carousel as an analogy to demonstrate the repetitive circularly pattern of this cycle of grief and gain. The line from which the song derives its title is "My life's just a carousel spinning around", which comes with a seemingly hopeless message as it can feel that their is no ideal pleasant ending that could inspire one to continue through the cycle, however, the lyrics quickly correct with "I'd pay again just to keep from stopping it now", which demonstrates that for every dilemma that is faced it is valuable to the lyricists to get to where you are supposed to be. The emphasis of this song is to use the moments of strife to further yourself on the quest to self actualization as one learns from their experiences. They address this further in "trying to find the city with the brightest lights" which implies that they are always seeking out  place that has not been reached through any of their prior journeys. They imply that they are intentionally moving from one to another in failed attempts to find where they are going, however, from the aforementioned lines we can tell that their experiences in each of these places have become miniature successes through what they have learned there. It bestows the idea upon listeners that living in the moment and taking each new experience in stride is more valuable to than simply reaching the destination. 

Range

     Although not widely known for their vocal work, the band features an excellent variety of range between the four of them. A paradigm of their works is the inclination to work up to their higher range, to exude the anger and hurt that had originally grounded the bands works as staples of the teenage rebellion that had inspired them when they formed the band in high school. However, this song leads in with low smooth vocals that exemplify the nostalgia of this moment. CAROUSEL is a reminiscent song that envelopes their newfound sense of contentment that is so contradictory to their prior accounts of what they have endured. That is one of the most important elements of this song though, to reframe the experiences that had  elicited such negative emotions with the new understanding of what they were meant to learn from them. As the song builds, most notably through the second chorus, the vocals soar to supersede the now swelling music and illustrate that no matter how intense and overwhelming the moment gets their is going to be a moment of reflection when it is over where they will appreciate the affair. The song end in higher notes that ring through the subdued music as the singer leaves the listener with a passionate closing to reedify the notion that everything they have been through has led them to a point of relative peace where they have sure authority to express the importance of suffering and how it can shape and grow a person. 

Pitch

    The variation of the pitch throughout the song is important to note as it demonstrates the growth of the singer. They begin so smooth and mellow that is does not command attention. Their vocals blend in well with the song, but as it builds so does the vibrancy of their voice. It takes on a sharper pitch to demonstrate the grit that has been applied to life's challenges and the assuredness of the singer as they move forward. When the music raises in pitch diminish the singer, the singers voice gets sharper. It loses the dull inclination at the beginning where they are describing passive nostalgia and moves into a more direct approach of asserting their understanding of the circle of life. They do not return to where they started the song, instead ending the song this new bolder way. This shows that even as the world around them (the music) continues its circular pattern the one who has undergone the experiences has changed and will not revert back to who they were before these obstacles. 

Timbre

    The beginning of the song features smooth somber vocals that exemplify the oppressiveness of the public opinion as they are overcoming their failures. As the song transitions into the chorus they begin to upend this with a higher harsher tone that implies strain on the singer to overcome. While still smooth, there is a clear push in the vocals that makes it more hollow which is intended to disclose a sense of effort in moving through the song. This is the point in the cycle where growth is occurring and the vocalist is finding a new voice that can contend with what is happening around them. In life the individual is coming to new conclusions even as they are unsure of the validity of them. The process is emboldening and grows more intense as the song goes on. By the final chorus the voice has gotten stronger and fuller. There is now an unwavering certainty in the voice as they continue to declare their truth as the music has nothing else to build to. The vocalist pushes even harder for the last part even as the music has reach its potential and holds below them. The vocalists smooth effortless vocals hold the listeners attention, and as the music begins to fade, they continue to demonstrate this new ease with beautiful falsettos. The final effect is nostalgia for the struggle they have conquered as opposed to the openings nostalgia that longed for peace. 

5SOS. “5 Seconds of Summer - CAROUSEL (Official Visualizer).” YouTube, 22 Sept. 2022, www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2TiJdymu_8. Accessed 31 Sept. 2025.

Hughes, Jen A. ““5SOS5” Album Review: With New Voices and New Sounds, 5 Seconds of Summer Redefine Their Musical Identity | Arts | the Harvard Crimson.” Www.thecrimson.com, 8 Oct. 2022, www.thecrimson.com/article/2022/10/18/5-seconds-of-summer-5sos5-album-review/. Accessed 31 Sept. 2025.

Reid, Poppy. “The New Rule of 5SOS.” Rolling Stone Australia, 15 June 2022, au.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/5sos-interview-41049/. Accessed 1 Oct. 2025.