I'm Going To Pretend It Hasn't Been Over Nine Months

When I first listened to Paramore's 'latest' album (scare qoutes are my way of indicating that I'm aware I haven't really been up on my posting on this blog), I was pretty much disappointed. It's not that it was bad, per se, but unlike 'Riot!', which was great top-to-bottom--and hooked me from the get-go, 'Brand New Eyes' lacked...something.

So I put it aside for, what I now realize, was a few months.

But when I finally gave it a second chance, I was more than pleasantly surprised--I can't stop listening.

Perhaps the most important thing I discovered the second time around I that 'Riot!' was a completely different album. Now this may seem obvious, but I think, like most people, we get in our minds that we don't want different. Rather, we want bands (and authors, and screenplay writers, etc.) to keep doing what made us love them in the first place. I know a lot of my friends couldn't stand 'Sam's Town' (and look at how much Rolling Stone doesn't get it), the Killers second album, because it was a significant departure from 'Hot Fuss.'. And they were right. But that didn't mean 'Sam's Town' was a bad album--far from it, in my opinion.

While I wouldn't say 'Brand New Eyes' is that different from 'Riot!', I will say there's a bit less 'edge', a bit less hardness to the songs. Whereas 'Crushcrushcrush' and 'Misery Business' have driving guitars and even a bit of meanness to them, 'BNW' carries itself with a bit less angst, and a bit more sweetness. My favorite songs off the album, notably 'The Only Exception' and 'Turn It Off' are basically ballads, fairly simple in melody--and stronger for that.

Here's "The Only Exception":



If you were expecting a second 'Riot!'--like I was--'BNW' will probably disappoint you. If you want to expand your musical tastes--and think Paramore writes good rock songs regardless of sub-genre, then I think you'll find yourself pleasantly surprised.

Even if it takes months to figure it out.