"Wildflower"
Single by 5 Seconds of Summer
from the album Calm
Released27 March 2020
Genre
Length3:40
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Oscar Gorres
5 Seconds of Summer singles chronology
"Old Me"
(2020) 		"Wildflower"
(2020) 		"2011"
(2021)
Music video
"Wildflower" on YouTube

"Wildflower" is a song by Australian pop rock band 5 Seconds of Summer, released on 25 March 2020 as the second promotional single from their fourth studio album Calm, before being released as the album's fifth single to radio on 17 April 2020.[3][4][5]

Background

Breaking the precedent set by previous 5 Seconds of Summer albums, “Wildflower” is the only track from Calm to feature bassist Calum Hood (or any member other than Luke Hemmings) on lead vocals. Talking about the song, Hood said, "We wanted to make the chorus kind of a choose-your-own-adventure, where some words are left out and then accentuated by these big stabs of synth. It lets everyone come up with their own interpretation, and fill in whatever they think those missing lyrics might be."[6][7]

Reception

Chris Payne of Billboard said, "The fifth single off Calm takes root in the flashy '80s touches that have served the Aussie quartet well in the past. Booming drumbeats, psychedelic harmonies, and synthy karate chops abound."[8]

In a review of the album, David from auspOp said "'Wildflower' is the most pop-centric these boys sound on the album... it's an addictively good song."[9]

Lyric and music videos

A lyric video was released along with the release of the single on 25 March 2020. The video was made by the band's creative director Andy DeLuca and Sarah Eiseman and features a circle of moving flowers with the song lyrics in the centre. The video was made with stop-motion animation, using 358 different photos.[4]

The band had originally planned a big-budget music video, but the shoot was cancelled last minute due to the stay-at-home order issued in California to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, each band member filmed themselves in front of a green screen which was passed around from house to house. According to DeLuca, who directed the video, he and assistant director Eiseman then, "quickly learned animation and drew up several blooming flowers, and also created the trippy colored backgrounds using milk and food dye. I then spent the next couple of days/nights editing nonstop until my eyes bled and the video was completed."[10]

The resulting video was released on 16 April 2020. It was described by Rolling Stone as "trippy" and "psychedelic" and DeLuca said of the concept behind the video, "Since the song has a pretty distinct 80s/90s tone, I came up with the idea of making an 80's/90's MTV-style music video. A 'music-video-themed music video'. The stuff I grew up on and loved."[10][11]

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[12]

Charts

Chart (2020) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[13] 80
Ireland (IRMA)[14] 80
Lithuania (AGATA)[15] 95
Netherlands (Tipparade)[16] 16
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[17] 8
UK Singles (OCC)[18] 81

Release history

Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various 25 March 2020[a]
[4]
Australia 27 March 2020 Contemporary hit radio Universal Music Australia [19]
Italy 17 April 2020 Universal [3]
United Kingdom
[20]

Notes

  1. ^ Release as a promotional single.

References

  1. ^ "5 Seconds of Summer differentiates itself from boy bands with new album 'CALM'". theseahawk. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  2. ^ "Review: 5 Seconds of Summer's new album shows a softer side of pop-rock". videtteonline.com. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  3. ^ a b "5 SECONDS OF SUMMER - WILDFLOWER (Radio Date: 17-04-2020)". EarOne. April 17, 2020. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c "5 Seconds of Summer's Calum Hood drops single "Wildflower" lyric video ahead of CALM album release". Meaww. 24 March 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  5. ^ "5SOS's Calum Hood Takes Lead On Sunny New Song 'Wildflower'". MTV. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  6. ^ "5 Seconds of Summer Release New Single "Wildflower"". Broadway World. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  7. ^ "Hear 5 Seconds of Summer's Euphoric New Song 'Wildflower'". Rolling Stone. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  8. ^ "5 Seconds of Summer Get Romantic on '80s-Inspired 'Wildflower': Listen". Billboard. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  9. ^ "Calm Yourself, David Checks Out the 5SOS Album". auspOp. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  10. ^ a b Greenwood, Koltan (2020-04-16). "Join 5 Seconds of Summer's psychedelic paradise in the "Wildflower" video". Alternative Press. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  11. ^ Martoccio, Angie (2020-04-16). "5 Seconds of Summer Unveil Trippy 'Wildflower' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  12. ^ "Credits / CALM / 5 Seconds Of Summer – TIDAL". Tidal. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  13. ^ "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 6 April 2020". No. 1570. Australian Recording Industry Association. 6 April 2020. ((cite magazine)): Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  14. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography 5 Seconds Of Summer". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  15. ^ "2020 14-os SAVAITĖS (kovo 27 – balandžio 2 d.) SINGLŲ TOP100" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. 3 April 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  16. ^ "Tipparade-lijst van week 22, 2020" [Tip parade list from week 22, 2020] (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
  17. ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 6 April 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  18. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  19. ^ "Singles To Radio". The Music Network. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
  20. ^ "Radio 1 Playlist". BBC. Archived from the original on 23 April 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
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