TheChez.net

by ssjrem

I wrote this for my school paper, so much like my “9″ review, it’ll have a slightly different tone than my usual stuff. Plus, those bitches in charge of the paper did some editing and shortening of it. Can’t really say I blame them, though, actually.So, you can now get my full, unedited review. Lucky you. Also, I came to realize while writing this that I cannot review music to save my life. From now on, I’m just going to stick to movies. But, I figured I may as well post this anyway. Sorry it sucks so much.

Paramore first burst onto the scene back in 2005 with the release of their debut album All We Know is Falling. At that time, lead singer Hayley Williams was just sixteen years old. The album met with moderate success, eventually selling around 400,000 copies. The band had a bit of emo or pop-punk sound to them that garnered them a solid number of devout fans that eagerly awaited their next album

In 2007, Paramore followed up All We Know is Falling with the release of Riot! This proved to be their breakout album, with “Misery Business,” the first single, leading the way. Riot! allowed Paramore to greatly expand their fanbase as their popularity gradually rose. The CD eventually went on to sell nearly 1,200,000 copies in the United States, marking a huge improvement after the band’s first effort. A year after Riot!, Paramore performed two songs on the “Twilight” soundtrack, allowing them to reach an ever greater number of people and obtaining even more fans.

After the success of Riot! and the new found attention from their songs on “Twilight,” Paramore had a lot to live up to with their third album. The band stated that they were going to try to branch out somewhat and attempt to do something differently. Paramore’s new album, brand new eyes, is a testament to their possible longevity. The band isn’t afraid to change things up a bit and take some risks. As the band members grow up and mature, their sound seems to gradually be shifting more toward a rock-like sound. They’re not abandoning the type of music that’s made them who they are by any means, but the band bring a more rock sound to songs like “Ignorance” and “Careful.”

In addition to songs like those that bring the rocking guitar solos, Paramore also tries a few different things on the album. They have a more ballad-like song “All I Wanted,” though they had a ballad on Riot! as well. One very interesting aspect of brand new eyes is that the album has two acoustic songs. Youtube is riddled with acoustic versions of their songs, so it’s no surprise that they chose to  include some on the album. Both “The Only Exception” and “Misguided Ghosts” are acoustic the latter of which is my personal favorite.

Brand new eyes undeniably brings a new sound for a band that has now been around for four years. They’ve come a long since the days of All We Know is Falling and they’ve met with a solid measure of success. Paramore chose not to contribute to the soundtrack for the sequel to Twilight, “New Moon,” because they didn’t want to be the “vampire house-band,” as guitarist Josh Farro put it. The band is grateful for the fact that “Twilight” helped them to break out, but they seem more concerned with evolving their sound than getting on the soundtrack to all the “Twilight” movies.

And that’s just what they do with brand new eyes. They take a few risks with the songs on the album. Some pay off and a few don’t, but the end product will definitely please their fans. There’s likely not enough diversity from their first two albums to garner them many new fans, but the band probably isn’t complaining. Brand new eyes shows that Paramore will do what it takes to keep up and they’ll probably be around for a long time to come.

So, hmmm, let’s see, I think one and a quarter chezes sounds about right.