This Is Why, Paramore

The nostalgic pop-punk band delivers an explorative and politically charged sixth album

Brooding and brimming with angst, This Is Why is unmistakably a Paramore album. The modern alt-rock sound borrows from a wide variety of genres, primarily 70s-80s alternative pop rock, 2000s post-punk and the softer sounds of modern folky indie rock. 

Strong, silky basslines and a warm analog sound drive the album forward through its cross-genre ventures. With less conventional instrumentation such as flute, mallet percussion and bass clarinet, Paramore expands their sound–but it never feels inauthentic.

This Is Why’s broad palette of influences requires diverse vocal performances from singer Hayley Williams, who slips in and out of the many different sounds with apparent ease. While booming on certain tracks in her usual Paramore delivery, Williams’ voice takes a more sultry route on bedroom poppy “Liar” and “Thick Skull,” evoking more refined notions of the anger and anxiety the band tends to explore. 

Lyrically, the album leaves something to be desired. A political charge gives the punchy songwriting a new take on classic Paramore angst, but lacks nuance and comes across as heavy-handed millennial discontent. On songs powered by Williams’ hard-edged delivery like “Figure 8,” the pedestrian lyricism is forgivable, but other tracks fall through. 
As much as This Is Why is an explorative endeavor, the band’s distinctive pop punk sound is present throughout. And luckily, as much as it toes the line, the album denies nostalgia, standing alone as a robust and confident demonstration of Paramore’s newfound versatility.