Previous Diagnoses:

Paradise Lost|Primus|Faith No More

Good day denizens of Sputnik and welcome to the fourth instalment of Dr. Gonzo’s “Diagnosis Series”. Today I will be looking at Paramore, the Franklin, Tennessee outfit that captured the hearts and minds of an entire generation back in the mid-noughties, with their own brand of pop-punk. So, get out of the waiting room chair and observe the doctor, as I go through all six of their studio albums and conclude if they’re worth half a damn or not. 

Band/Artist: Paramore

Origins: Franklin, Tennessee, U.S.

Founded: 2004

Current Members:
Hayley Williams: (vocals, keyboards)

Zac Farro: (drums, keyboards)

Taylor York: (guitar, keyboards)

Previous members:

Josh Farro (guitar)

Jeremy Davis: (bass)

Jason Bynum: (guitar)

John Hembree: (bass)

Hunter Lamb: (guitar)

Studio albums: 6

Active: Yes

All We Know is Falling (2005)

The Doctor’s rating: 3/5

Analysis: For me, All We Know is Falling is fine. It’s a decent first album that lays down the groundwork for future records. Hayley delivers some great performances on the likes of “Pressure”, “Emergency” and “Conspiracy”, and the music does a decent job of toeing the pop-punk line with some energetic drum work and infectious guitar melodies. Other than that, there’s not much else to say here. It’s an innocuous album that I enjoy when I, admittedly seldom, put it on and then immediately forget most of it straight after hearing it.

Prescription: An inoffensive debut that should please fans of pop-rock/punk. Jam once and see how you get on.

 Riot (2007)

The Doctor’s rating: 4/5

Analysis: Riot is everything a sophomore album should be: taking what works from your last effort and refining those elements to make a superior product. Everything here is a step up, both technically and compositionally. The production captures their vigour and youthfulness and in turn, the band are more vigilant in the songwriting department, creating tracks with infectious, powerful melodies and hooks. Every track on here brings more memorability to the table than anything on their debut, but “That’s What You Get”, “crushcrushcrush” and “Misery Business” are clearly next-level tracks that highlight the band’s promising potential. It’s just an all-round great pop-punk album that rightly puts Paramore in with the big leagues.

Prescription: Riot is superior to All We Know is Falling in every way. The band definitely found their strides on this album and ultimately, it’s hard to argue with the quality on this record. It’s an excellent LP that captures the formative years of an entire generation, but listening back to it 16 years later, it’s easy to appreciate its competency and shrewd aptness for great writing without having to mention nostalgia. Listen to it 3-4 times a day for a week, then jam where necessary after that.

Brand New Eyes (2009) 

The Doctor’s rating: 4.3/5

Analysis: This right here is peak Paramore. Not only did the band smash the third album curse, they clearly learned from the minor hiccups on their last two albums. Brand New Eyes is bigger, better, and created by musicians working on all cylinders. The songwriting is attuned to be as catchy as possible and done in the least amount of time possible. The band also finds a delicate balance between energetic punk tracks and slower ballad-types to keep the pacing snappy and the listener fully engaged. Admittedly, Brand New Eyes has some ropey lyric writing at times (namely on “Playing God”), but I can confidently say this is the most balanced Paramore record to date and has a good chunk of their best songs under one roof. “All I Wanted”, “The Only Exception”, “Ignorance”, “Careful” and “Brick by Boring Brick” are all top-tier tunes that exhibit the band’s greatest qualities. And let’s not forget “Decode” – my favourite Paramore tune of all time. It’s a bonus track, and a song promoting a (terrible) film of all things, but it captures a side of the band never seen before or since “Decode” – a fun, melancholic thrill ride.

Prescription: If you’re wanting to listen to the band for the first time, the doctor is going to prescribe Brand New Eyes to you. This is easily their best album, and one that balances and refines everything they’ve been playing with for the last 4 years. Listen to it 4-5 times a day for a week, then play it as necessary after that.

Paramore (2013)

The Doctor’s rating: 1.5/5

Analysis: 4 years after the release of Brand New Eyes, Paramore took a lot longer to come out when compared to previous albums. In between this and Brand New Eyes the band was plagued with internal dramas that resulted in the Farro brothers leaving the band to pursue other ventures. The results? Well, I’ll be honest – when this first came out, I hated it. In fact, this is the first time I’ve gone back to it since it initially came out. The verdict? It still sucks. The Paramore sound has been significantly watered down to a bog-standard pop-rock one. All of that time and effort refining and honing their signature sound for the first three albums was complete folly when you look at what they did for Paramore. Musically and stylistically the record feels like a Paramore skinsuit; the base elements are there, but there’s no heart behind any of it. The entire time I was listening to it, I couldn’t help but feel like I was sitting inside an empty vessel where the band used to be. Hayley’s performance here is also pretty poor, the melodies are vapid and her act sounds half-baked at best.

Prescription: I implore you to avoid this one. There isn’t a single redeeming moment to be found on here and the overall impression I get from it is the same as it was 10 years ago, which is that they deconstructed their sound to give you some crappy noob-tier pop-rock tracks with the depth of a street puddle. I can’t prescribe you anything for this. Just avoid it and listen to something else instead.

After Laughter (2017)

The Doctor’s rating: 3.5/5

Analysis: Another 4 years on from their last album, but a worthwhile wait compared to their dismal 2013 effort. After Laughter sees the return of Zak Farro on the drums and has the band recalibrating their sound and correcting course, in an attempt to utilise their core strengths: pithy writing and memorable melodies. Paramore successfully retained those elements from After Laughter and introduced a different coat of paint in which to present their old assets. That new coat of paint being 80’s synth-pop. For me personally, the 80’s synth-pop aesthetic is a shade gimmicky and does a little bit of damage to the product overall. The songwriting on here is strong, but this album came out at a time where every medium was capitalising on this trend for all things 80s. In terms of the band’s sound; this focus to move away from rock was a surprisingly natural transition, bringing more sonic variety and depth to their palette which in turn, pushed its members out of their comfort zones in a way that presented genuine maturity. Unlike Paramore’s failed attempts at adulthood, After Laughter feels organically so and does an excellent job of juxtaposing this bubbly synth sound with an undercurrent of lamenting and melancholy. Despite my initial reaction to the aesthetics, After Laughter is an excellent return to form that pushes the band into new and exciting pastures.

Prescription: An excellent return for the band. It’s not without its little flaws, but it’s hard to deny that After Laughter hits all the right beats where it should. Jam 2-3 times a day for a week and see how you get on.

This is Why (2023)

The Doctor’s rating: 3.8/5

Analysis: This is Why is another shift in tone, moving away from the sugar and spice synth-pop of last time, opting to go back to the rock playing field again. In fact, This is Why sets itself up in a similar way to Paramore, the difference here is that the band gets the basics right first and then builds on it from there. It’s a nice blend of post-punk, alt-rock, and pop in a way that feels very fluid and cohesive, instrumentally speaking. The tone of This is Why is arguably my favourite from all of their works, which can go from a rock-out energy to a gossamer ballad in a moment’s notice. The main issue I have with this album comes from the tenuous lyrics which have a habit of feeling disingenuous, superfluous, and/or prosaic. Williams has never been known to be all that profound, but the blare behind her on previous entries typically masked that fact. On This is Why, there is a lot of space for Williams’ voice to pervade the unoccupied areas of their sound and have you zone in on what she’s singing about, which amounts to the total sum of fuck all for most of it. Other than that, this is the best album Paramore have made since Brand New Eyes and should definitely be checked out by fans and newcomers alike.

Prescription: The post-punk direction was a surprisingly effective route to take the band’s new album. A thoroughly engaging record with lots of facets to wade through. Listen to it 2-3 times a day for a week, then play as necessary.

Doctor’s Notes:

Strengths:

• Their pop-punk era shows a satisfying progression for them as musicians.
• Paramore’s last two albums have been very different stylistically, but they still retain the core essence a fan looks for.
• At their best, the band have a knack for writing excellent and concise hits.  

Weaknesses: 

• As yet, despite the band having a pretty solid run of albums, they haven’t made a record that sets the world on fire.
• All ‘What Ifs’, but it’s debatable their fumbling in the 10s was down to the loss of Josh Farro. It would have been interesting to see where they’d have gone sonically after Brand New Eyes, had he remained in the band.

Diagnosis: Paramore are a household name, and I’ve debated for years whether they’re overrated or not. Having examined their discography for this diagnosis, I’ve come to the conclusion they aren’t overrated. What Paramore have achieved over the years is warranted and deserves the attention they’ve garnered over the decades. I still think the band peaked in 2009, but there are still some quality moments to be had within their most recent albums.