TW: This article discusses alcoholism, body dysmorphia, depression and anxiety.
It was with pleasant surprise earlier this autumn that I received the news that Ashton Irwin would be releasing a solo album: Superbloom.
Having taken a deep dive into all things 5SOS (after overcoming my teenage avoidance of listening to ‘basic pop music’) and discovering their latest album ‘CALM’ at the beginning of lockdown, I had quickly taken to the passionate drummer of the pop-rock-punk-who-even-knows-anymore band!
I had scrawled YouTube for clips of Irwin singing, drumming and just talking and found myself genuinely taken aback by his eloquent emotional and musical maturity. So to find out that we would be receiving an album full of all his philosophical thoughts, and a new solo musical direction, was honestly a dream come true.
The record
Superbloom is an honest record, with raw lyricism and daring musicality at its core and feels very much like a simultaneous conversion between Irwin and his fans, and also with himself. For the first time, Irwin opens up on incredibly vulnerable topics, often spelling out his own mental health struggles on tracks such as ‘Skinny Skinny’ and ‘Greyhound’, in a way he hasn’t done before with his music.
With Superbloom, Irwin has undertaken a project very close to his heart, professing in an Instagram post that “ambitions like releasing a record have swirled around my brain since I was 10 years old”. He wishes to be as transparent as possible with his fans about the process, sharing in his Instagram Live release chat that he “really wanted to release this independently…I partnered with Ingrooves…because I wanted my music to come directly to you guys”.
Mental health
This sentiment combines perfectly with the focus of the album which often feels like guidance directly from Irwin to his fans. Indeed, tracks like ‘Sunshine’ could be interpreted as direct appeals by Irwin to the listener to persevere in times of struggle and try to ‘see the sunshine’ in everyday life.
Sensitive topics like his own mental health are not something Irwin strays away from on this record. His lead single ‘Skinny Skinny’ alludes to his own struggles with alcoholism and body dysmorphia, with the accompanying music video depicting Irwin destroying the mirrors which present him with a distorted view of himself. It was important to him to open with such a powerful message, commenting that “I wanted to release this first, to put something out into the world that resonated with me so deeply that there was nowhere else to hide”.
Production
Collaborating with a roommate and Grammy-nominated Producer and Engineer, Matthew Pauling, has not only allowed Irwin to go on his own self-exploratory lyrical journey but also to learn more about the world of production, having been, in his own words, “a stumbling child”, before Pauling’s guidance.
He recalls the moment the idea of a solo project was born in his Rolling Stones AU interview, when lockdown was announced in LA, and he and Pauling began conversations like, “Okay, what would a solo project from me sound like?”.
The sound he came up with is a departure from the pop space 5SOS has often occupied within the industry, instead of broadening to a more rock alternative genre. Irwin describes himself as “a very rock, alternative-based consumer of music’ with ‘a lot of Seventies, Eighties, Nineties influences, and some Two-Thousands influences”.
“‘My life and whole existence kind of changed after finding some help”
This playful venture into the playground of production has allowed Irwin to create fascinating tracks like ‘The Sweetness’, which features a haunting, but catchy electric guitar riff, alternated with a more mellow vocal and guitar verse. Perhaps this juxtaposition in instrumentation mimics the lyrics, which describe a recurring cycle of “the sweetness” which “makes you love your life again” and the “darkness” which “takes it all away again”.
Irwin has implied he is discussing the effects of treating mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety, expressing on his Instagram Live that “if you feel like life is a constant uphill battle, and you’re dealing with depression or anxiety or anything, and you think you need to reach out for help”. For Irwin, this song depicts “how [his] life and whole existence kind of changed after finding some help”.
An album with a purpose
It’s clear to me that what sets this album apart is the fact that there is a clear purpose to it; perhaps even higher than simply selling units. Not only is it clearly a long-awaited goal of his own, but it also feels like a gift for any listener suffering from similar demons to Irwin. The tracks provide a social and philosophical commentary which seem to transcend the topics of your standard pop album.
To a seasoned 5SOS fan, the album Irwin has produced is in no way a surprise. You just have to watch a couple of his interviews with the band to understand he is an incredible psychological and analytical person, obsessed with finding the deeper meaning in things. This can also be seen with his artistic creations both for ‘Superbloom’, and ‘CALM’ released earlier this year.
Album artwork
In an Instagram post, Irwin shared his early concept work for the album including drawings of the ‘Skinny Skinny demon’ and the ‘birth/work/death cycle’ which he discusses in his powerful track ‘Greyhound’. He later collaborated on the album artwork with Gianni Arone, who helped to create visual depictions of each of his songs, which feature on his merchandise and the vertical videos for the album on Spotify.
In terms of live performance, Irwin seems keen to embrace the new opportunities lockdown has to offer, having streamed a Live Concert Film on YouTube on the 30th October, which included a live performance of the album plus a cover of Nirvana’s ‘Heart-Shaped box’.
The film included the use of authentic IKEGAMI Japanese cameras that saturate and retrieve those classic colours reminiscent of videos from influential artists like Led Zeppelin, The Doors, Pearl Jam and Nirvana.
As a complete package, Superbloom is an authentic album with unbridled creativity at its core. Whilst not occupying the pop space customary for Irwin, it is a moving record which promises to only get better over time, with each re-listen revealing more lyrical complexities to make you question your own long-standing beliefs.
Aarthee Parimelalaghan
If you are struggling with any of the mental health issues mentioned in this article please visit these resources to find more professional support and advice:
Featured image courtesy of Bruno Emmanuelle on Unplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
Aarthee Pari
Aarthee is a second-year PPEist at The University of Oxford. She is passionate about social affairs and sharing the stories of the marginalised. Aside from politics, Aarthee is a keen musician, playing both piano and saxophone and harbours a secret dream to play the saxophone solo in Miss Saigon’s ‘Last Night of the World’.