The album leads off with two heavily electronic-influenced songs. Producer Justin Meldal-Johnson, who has made a name for himself as the bassist for Nine Inch Nails as well as producing albums for bands such as M83 and Neon Trees, is familiar with the electronic-industrial elements in production. The result is most evidenced by the album’s early tracks.
The opener, “Fast In My Car” seems to be channeling a more aggressive version Metric, with vocalist Hayley Williams singing the song’s melodies in a way that is textbook Emily Haines (I will have more on that later). “Now,” on the other hand, adds a heavily effected vocal melody to a dizzyingly average instrumental backing to create one of the worst songs in the band’s history. It’s an incredibly intriguing and, in my opinion, erroneous decision for Paramore to start the album in this fashion. The back to back positioning of the two songs deceptively sets the table for an album heavy on electronic effects. This is inefficient for what the album offers as a whole, which is a heavily diverse collection of pop songs featuring varied instrumentation.
“Ain’t It Fun” whose lyrical content seems to be addressing Williams’ former bandmates (“Ain’t it fun, living in the real world/ Ain’t it good, being all alone.”) combines an incredibly catchy beat/synth combo and syncopated marimba to create the most funky song Paramore has ever crafted. The song reaches its pop-perfection zenith however, when a full choir (complete with male and female soloist) kicks in after the song’s second chorus. The song is loads of fun, and is easily the most memorable of Paramore’s tracks
Longtime fans of the band will find the closest equivalent to the band’s energetic pop-punk style of previous albums on “Anklebiters” and “Daydreaming”. “Anklebiters,” a barely two-minute long explosion of vitality bristles forward with dynamic gang chants and a pulsating punk-rock drum beat. Meanwhile, “Daydreaming” is a gorgeous track which brings forth a repeated lyrical theme of looking toward the future. “I’m gonna go, / where the rest of the dreamers go / daydreaming / all the time,” sings Williams, and the optimism is infectious.
Where the album’s tracks really stand out however is when they eschew the fast-paced tracks for more mid-tempo ballad-type songs. Previous albums had displayed that this was not Paramore’s strong suit. Despite “The Only Exception’s” success on radio, Paramore had previously proven to be more in their element in uptempo, driving pop-rock songs. However, this self-titled album displays a growing ability by Williams to take a more vulnerable tone in order to carry a mid-tempo ballad. The lilting chorus of “Hate to See Your Heart Break” puts this new layer of Hayley’s vocal ability on full display. The song is a tender introspection on heartbreak and longing, and it is guided by a beautifully-arranged string orchestra, which crescendos at the perfect moment of the song. The other ballad on the album, “Last Hope,” takes it cues from the former in its use of swells and crescendos. The track use of the chill-inducing chants of “Gotta let it happen,” repeated several times after the songs bridge, are a superb use of vocal layering which perfectly suits it.
The underrated instrumental performance of the year goes to drummer Ilan Rubin, who is not an official member of Paramore but recorded all the drum tracks on the album. Though Rubin may never get the credit he deserves for his stellar work on Paramore, the album wouldn’t be nearly the pop-rock powerhouse it is without him. His hard-driving beat and mammoth fills allow “Part II” to live up to its predecessor (“Let The Flames Begin” from Riot!) incredible pedigree, while carving its own niche. During the bridge of “Part II,” Rubin simulates the drum fill former drummer Zac Farro used to play in live performances of the original song, which would feature an extended outro. The little flare, certainly thrown in for longtime devoted fans of the band, is one that is much appreciated on an album that is so focused on the future.
Going into the album, my most anticipated track was the near-eight minute album closer “Future.” The song, at least in its essence does not disappoint. It builds from a simple acoustic guitar and vocal performance to a punishing climax, full of Silversun Pickups-esque bass fuzz and a three minute instrumental explosion. Unfortunately, a remarkably awkward fade-out, fade-back in combination approximately ¾ of the way through the song eliminates the effect of what could’ve otherwise been a powerfully emotional song. A more influential producer than Meldal Johnson would’ve been able to handle the weight of the song better. Meldal-Johnson also should have convinced the band to scrap the ukulele interludes, which do nothing to add to the overall thematic content of the album, and instead detract from the track-by-track flow. “Anklebiters” would transition tremendously well into the full track that follows it, “Proof,” which is vaguely reminiscent of Motion City Soundtrack’s “Can’t Finish What You Started.” Instead the electric charge that “Anklebiters” gives to the album is stifled by Williams, a ukulele, and the stunningly bad lyrics, “I’ve been saving money, / eating only top ramen” on “Holiday.”
Though Williams loves to say “Paramore is still a band,” the “band” is unequivocally reliant on her vocal delivery and lyrical firepower to have sustained success. Unfortunately, the problem with being a female-fronted pop-rock band is that female-fronted bands have more imitators than any other type of music. Williams should know this first hand with all the Paramore-clone types that have tried to sign with Fueled by Ramen since the band’s inception. While Hayley sometimes does attempt to imitate some of the most famous females who have taken vocalist duties- the aforementioned allusions to Emily Haines aside, comparisons could also be made to Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Gwen Stefani of No Doubt on Paramore- her greatest successes come when she allows her voice to be a completely unique entity. The greatest example of this is on the bridge of second single “Still Into You,” as her vocals soar over all in one of the album’s most transcendent moments.
Bottom Line: With this self-titled release, Paramore has proven that they can be successful in writing a tremendous collection of pop-rock. Unfortunately the diversity of the track hampers the album’s consistency. Perhaps a tighter, less filler-full product (sans the first three tracks and the interludes) would’ve garnered the band a greater shot at putting together and album of the year contender. But as it stands, Paramore still features some of the band’s best songs, as well as Hayley Williams’ apex in terms of vocal performance, and for that the album deserves an abundance of praise. Paramore is an album about looking to the future for opportunities instead of dwelling on past mistakes, and in that way it is perfectly suited to being the self-titled album of Paramore’s career.
Key Tracks: “Ain’t It Fun”, “Still Into You”, “Hate To See Your Heart Break”
8.0/10
