The wait is finally over! Paramore is back and better than ever. After four years of their self-titled album Paramore, the band’s long-awaited fifth studio album After Laughter has been announced and alongside it came a new single. The band released their new song “Hard Times” on April 19th, 2017 and a new album, which was released through Fueled by Ramen on May 12th.
“Hard Times” begins with an interesting and new instrument, the xylophone, in the background combined with edgy guitar strums. However weird this pairing may seem, it actually plays together very well!
Lyrics such as “All that I want is to wake up fine/To tell me that I’m alright, that I ain’t gonna die” and “Hard times, gonna make you wonder why you even try” gives the song sad undertones matched with upbeat music. This style is a Paramore classic move and a fan favorite.
Hayley William’s voice comes in clear and strongly confident. With obvious connection to the 1980’s, it is far from old and drab. It’s classic vibes underline its pop rock tones, giving it a fresh and chill aethestic. Its fun and energetic beat makes the song easy to love and unsurprisingly catchy.
“Hard Times” is a great song that definitely shows the evolution of the band. Despite my love for the old and classic Paramore songs, it is natural for bands to grow and change from previous works.
Paramore continues to redefine emo as they delve into this new era of rock in their album After Laughter. Paramore’s transition from an angsty teen to a young adult hasn’t been easy, but the band has done it so gracefully. Although the future tends to be uncertain, what I can be confident about is Paramore’s generous gift of music and the connection they are able to form with their listeners, that gives them confident and support through anything they may be going through.
Let me know what you think in the comments below!
~Stay Punk Rock~
Rating: 5/5
Favorite Lyrics:
Hard times, gonna make you wonder why you even try/ Hard times, gonna take you down and laugh when you cry
Hard Times Music Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEB6ibtdPZc
Where you can find Paramore:
http://www.paramore.net/
https://www.facebook.com/paramore/
Punk Rock Reviews 
I don’t know…getting a little thrown by their identity crisis.
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Love the favorite lyrics section of your music reviews! Nice touch.
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Thank you!
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I really like your formatting you did on this review. You have your ideas much more neatly organized than mine are, I am impressed. As for the song, I have not listened to Paramore’s new album very much, or this song. However, after reading your positive review of it I think I will be. Keep it up!
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Thank you!
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Completely agree with the people above, you organise your posts beautifully! Nice work 🙂
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I don’t really listen to Paramore but I loveeed this song since I discovered it!
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I agree!
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Just saw the video for “Hard Times” on MTV Live; didn’t realize it was new…
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I agree with you that the xylophone works surprisingly well and I love the sound of the song, but the lyrics don’t do anything for me. It is a little too… on the nose emo for me, haha. I think that’s partly why I prefer “Told You So.”
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