Let’s be honest: we were beyond stoked when Paramore announced "After Laughter’s" release- with their incredibly tantalizing profile picture updates, and the awesome neon aesthetic. As a child, did you ever watch "Zoom?"
That’s what watching the music video for "Hard Times" felt like. Not gonna lie, the intense new sound was a little startling, and I wasn’t sure if I was totally in love with this new chapter in the band’s history. After all, die-hard fans jumped aboard this crazy train for songs like "Emergency," "Misery Business" and "Ignorance." At tamest, we were jamming to "Misguided Ghosts." So when this album, with its amazing, sun-drenched, lackadaisical beach aura dropped into our hands, we were a little thrown off. However, like any entity in life, Hayley Williams et. al have grown, changed, and relayed this awesome growth to their fans. We are not the same people, either. As listeners, we have changed. We like new bands, new music, new media. It would be crazy to think that a band could go eight years without releasing an album and retain their exact sound from over a decade before. Life happens. Eight years is an incredibly long time, that goes by quicker than we can process.
As soon as I listened to "After Laughter" on Spotify, and heard Williams crooning voice performing brand new effervescent melodies, I knew I was in love. There is something so intimate about every line of each song. Paramore is opening its innards for us to judge, and all is laid bare. In the tumultuous history of the band, it’s a wonder they even mustered the strength to bring us this work of such beauty. Every song reveals some mature aspect of the “new” Paramore. In true, secret lover-like fashion, they tell us about some insecurity, issue, and struggle they had to overcome. After all, they aren’t superhuman. And really, is that what Paramore songs have always been about? The content is familiar, the only thing that leaves some fans indecisive is the style.
Songs on the album range from '80s synth pop, lazy beach day, lullaby, and rockabilly, to groovin' tunes with just enough spunk in the drums to remind you of their original style. So what happened to punk-pop? Emo-pop? Instead, I pose the question-- who is to say that these genres haven’t evolved as well over the last decade? Society has changed, so why can’t the guidelines defining certain types of music. After all, every style is influenced by previous genres. Why keep renaming and struggling to define, strictly, what exact name applies to each exact song or album? Why not just appreciate the music for what it is- fun, new, and exciting?
1. "Hard Times"
Gonna make you wonder why you even try/ Hard times / Gonna take you down and laugh when you cry.
A song about living through the hard times, and emerging triumphantly in spite of them. You may hit rock bottom, but when you get there you can kick it with your friends!
2. "Rose-Colored Boy"
I want you to stop insisting that I'm not a lost cause /'Cause I've been through a lot / Really all I've got is just to stay pissed off / If it's all right by you
A song about having taken of your rose-tinted glasses and facing the real world, and explaining it to your friends. You know everything is going to be fine, but sometimes you just need to blow off some steam and be upset, and that’s okay, too.
3. "Told You So"
If I got down on my knees and told you I was yours forever / Would you get down on yours too and take my hand?
A song about crawling back to the ones you love but let go, and asking for forgiveness, but fearing their rejection. Who can’t relate to missing someone they let go?
4. "Forgiveness"
And you, you want forgiveness / But I, I just can't do it yet
A song about being unable to immediately forgive those who have wronged you. Forgiving isn’t forgetting, and you will always carry that pain with you. While holding grudges may not be healthy, there is definitely a period where one finds themselves unable to muster the strength and humility to forgive just yet.
5. "Fake Happy"
Oh please, I bet everybody here is fake happy too
A song about the times when life gives you lemons. It gives you, your dog, your neighbor, and everyone else lemons, too, and we all come out just fine. In the meantime, while we’re still pondering what to do with this sour citrus fruits, we smile and play it off like everything is fine.
6. "26"
Hold onto hope if you got it / Don't let it go for nobody / And they say that dreaming is free / But I wouldn't care what it cost me
A song about hope being all you got, and being, above all, worth fighting for.
7. "Pool"
I'm done giving up / You are the wave / I could never tame / If I survive / I'll dive back in
A song about giving up, on giving up, on people.
8. "Grudges"
And if you wanna call me up or come over / Come on we'll laugh till we cry / Like we did when we were kids / 'Cause we can't keep holding on to grudges
A song about letting go of grudges. After all, everyone grows old and changes. Don’t believe me? When was the last time you took the Myers-Briggs test? That’s what I thought. Why waste your time being upset over a person that could be completely different since the incident?
9. "Caught in the Middle"
I can't think of getting old / It only makes me want to die / And I can't think of who I was / 'Cause it just makes me want to cry, cry, cry
A song about the fear that seizes us as we grow and change. We don’t recognize ourselves anymore, but we don’t really want to. Isn’t that what coming of age is all about? No matter how old and mature you are, you’re just caught in the middle.
10. "Idle Worship"
Remember how we used to like ourselves? / What little light that's left, we need to keep it sacred / I know that you're afraid to let all the dark escape ya / But we could let the light illuminate these hopeless places
A song about growing to love and accept yourself for who you are, despite your imperfections. Everyone is striving to improve themselves, and none of us are superhuman. Work on yourself, and you’ll see that those around you aren’t as crucial to your well-being as you thought they were.
11. "No Friend"
I see myself in the reflection of people's eyes / Realizing what they see may not be even close to the image I see in myself / And I think I might actually be more afraid / I feel like they know the story
A song about the reality behind fame, the people behind the rose-tinted glasses we all wear. On an even more personal level, it’s a song about the discrepancy between how we view people and how they view themselves. It’s jam-packed with self-references any Paramore fan is going to love.
12. "Tell Me How"
Of all the weapons you fight with / Your silence is the most violent
A song about interpersonal relationships long-since expired. Sometimes all you need is one word, one word to know that everything will be okay, and the person you want it from just can’t muster the strength to give it to you.
Despite the intense nostalgic themes of the entire album, the light-hearted approach Paramore took renders these insightful songs more mature than whiny, more beautiful than awkward. Being able to admit that all ups have their own intrinsic downs is what marks an experienced person. There may be no clear separation between joy and sorrow in most aspects of life, but there is always hope, as "After Laughter" reminds us.
