Album Review: Paramore - 'brand new eyes'

If you had paid attention to Paramore in the small break between the release of 2007’s Riot! and the writing stage of brand new eyes; you’d know what this band has had to overcome – Media attention, inside anger, ultimately ending in the band almost breaking up.

The band sound tighter then ever on the new record, especially on the lead single ‘Ignorance’, which was written about Hayley feeling “judged, singled out, and betrayed" by her bandmates.  

From the moment you hit play, your speakers will be ablaze with what Paramore do best. The albums opener ‘Careful’ starts quickly with streamlining from clean guitar lines and accelerated percussion. It’s impossible not to see how much they have managed to mature with this album – and produce immaculate results at the same time.

The first few songs, Careful, Ignorance, Playing God and Brick By Boring Brick (sure to be a crowd-pleaser on the live circuit) show that there’s no lull between the catchy hooks found on Riot! and the vitality on ‘brand new eyes’.

‘The Only Exception’ is the first acoustic track on the record – that, to my ears, sounds melodically a lot like Coldplay’s famous track ‘Yellow’. Rumored to be written about Williams’ long-term relationship with New Found Glory guitarist Chad Gilbert, this song perfectly demonstrates Hayley’s vocal ability in a way that will tug at your heartstrings and have you singing along.

On the track ‘Looking Up’ Hayley expresses her feelings on the groups almost disbandment with an appreciative honesty, (“God knows the world doesn’t need another band/But what a waste it would’ve been/I can't believe we almost hung it up”). 

Looking over the bands discography, their progression is obvious and natural at the same time. Williams’ vocals are now dripping with attitude and confidence, yet manage to hold such a sincerity to them when it comes to the softer songs.   

Whilst ‘Misguided Ghosts’ and ‘All I Wanted’ are, in my opinion, mediocre and a bit lost compared to the other tracks, Hayley’s vocals still manage to glow next to the unplugged execution, although the melody is lukewarm compared to what came before it.

It’s no secret that Williams’ vocals are basically what makes Paramore- well, Paramore. As a fan, this album has managed to deliver everything that I hoped it would. If this is them now – I can’t wait to see what they’ll be able to accomplish once they hit their mid-20s. 

1. Careful

2. Ignorance

3. Playing God

4. Brick by Boring Brick

5. Turn It Off

6. The Only Exception

7. Feeling Sorry

8. Looking Up

9. Where the Lines Overlap

10. Misguided Ghosts

11. All I Wanted

12. Decode (Bonus Track)