Paramore - Paramore
Critic Score
Based on 22 reviews
2013 Ratings: #629 / 1115
User Score
2013 Rank: #73
Liked by 378 people
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CRITIC REVIEWS

100
Alternative Press
A sprawling, 17-song, 64-minute monster that is without a doubt the finest music these three artists—vocalist Hayley Williams, guitarist Taylor York and bassist Jeremy Davis—have ever made.
91
Entertainment Weekly

At 17 tracks, Paramore’s self-titled release seems like it should also be a textbook victim of its creators’ self-indulgence — but in fact it comes off like the great Blondie-indebted 21st-century new-wave album that No Doubt were trying to make with 2012’s Push and Shove.

90
Drowned in Sound

Paramore is an assured and confident record. For every contemplative minute of the LP, there's three more minutes spiralling in the eye of a rock storm.

90
AllMusic

Paramore is a veritable pop opera about a band reborn, phoenix-like from the ashes of a broken lineup, better and stronger than any previous incarnation.

83
A.V. Club

Paramore is the rare record on which a band clearly wants to assert itself as a serious artistic force and actually succeeds.

80
PopMatters

Paramore is both the band’s most polished and messiest album, which somehow pays off.

80
Kerrang!
It's daring and rarely less than dazzling.
80
SPIN

An hour long, with multiple track titles that start with the word "Interlude" and a song that's a sequel to a chiming ballad from two albums ago, Paramore is an ambitious album by necessity: It's the test that the band still exists.

80
The Guardian
At 17 tracks, it's a little overlong, but Paramore's lively new incarnation suits them well.
70
musicOMH

The influence of new blood mixed with Paramore’s own distinct sound has created a vibrant, melodic record with sing-along choruses, and although it flirts with the softer side of the rock spectrum it’s still one ballsy album.

70
FasterLouder

Under the fiery willpower, Paramore’s guts are still intact, and they deliver post-emo pop metal with a verve that’s unmatched.

70
Rolling Stone

Paramore 2.0 maintain their signature post-emo pop-metal gusto and added a Stefani-Clarkson elasticity that at times make this feel like a solo debut.

70
DIY

This may not be what we were expecting, and it may not be the Paramore that we’ve come to know and love. But, at the same time, here are a band still discovering who they are, and this album may stand as an important step on that path.

70
NME

Paramore have always been more pop than their fans may like to admit, and this mainstream rebirth feels like a transitional step to something gigantic.

60
Consequence of Sound

The slightly disjointed nature of the 17 tracks and lyrics that could still stand to mature hopefully make this record a stepping stone for Paramore 2.0., leaving fans satisfied yet more intrigued for what might lie ahead.

60
The Observer

The commercial emo that has earned Tennessee's Paramore platinum sales is still present on their fourth album, as are the unremarkable ballads, but there's also a new willingness to try other genres.

60
The Sydney Morning Herald
Williams has a starring role in the vivacious Anklebiters and (One of Those) Crazy Girls, and her charisma almost encompasses the expansive 17 tracks.
60
The Arts Desk
The album’s incoherent sequencing means that it comes across a little like the work of a band that’s not sure where it’s going next - but on the strength of the individual songs, that “where” can be just about wherever it wants.
60
Q Magazine
It hasn't got all the best tunes, but this bullishly self-titled album hits the target like a hair-dyed, tattooed William Tell.
40
The Irish Times
There’s no denying that it’s all delivered with equal measures of assurance and style, but Paramore might very well look back on this album and wonder, did they really write a pop song as woefully generic as Ain’t It Fun and get away with it?
30
Sputnikmusic
This is some fucking foolishness right here.
30
Classic Rock

You’d think the remaining trio, led by singer Hayley Williams, would come back swinging. What we get instead, though, is a parade of beige pop by numbers that even Taylor Swift would turn down for being too generic.

89

Paramore shift gears with their fourth studio album release, self-titled. Gone are those anthem emo and punk aspects found in the bands previous entries, instead focusing on a blend of new wave, synth and pop rock to bring together a new identity and sound as the band enters the 2010s.

An album that really demonstrates just how a band can grow with their audience, Self-Titled experiments with sounds influenced from a variety rock and pop genres, throwing the band into new territory and ... read more

ST4T1C
80

Not quiiite as crazy about this one as I was with “Brand New Eyes”, and I think I slightly prefer “This Is Why” over this too, but Paramores self-titled is a fun asf album that has just as much drive and personality as their other albums, even if it is in a bit more of an accessible sound. It does kinda suffer from that a bit, as I think the songs on here do take a bit of a more boring sound as the album goes sadly. But generally I think that the highs on here are still ... read more

Stankysauce
78

This album so far is pure bliss

Edit: and I definitely still agree, this thing is pretty great. It has a pretty mediocre ending and many tracks followed a pretty obvious formula but I still came out loving the vast majority of them.

SkelSteve
75

meh. doesn't hit the same as other Paramore albums for me, just feels a bit more plain and boring.

clarkr
30

Still not a Paramore fan. Not bad just boring. There's nothing here I haven't already heard a thousand times before.

ithixf
90

my Paramore phase was kinda crazy because when i woke up from that phase i just kinda realised that Paramore aren't really as good as i thought they were, still absolutely love this album tho

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Track List

1Fast in My Car
3:42
87
2Now
4:10
83
3Grow Up
3:50
83
4Daydreaming
4:31
81
5Interlude: Moving On
1:30
76
6Ain't It Fun
4:56
93
7Part II
4:41
90
8Last Hope
5:09
87
9Still into You
3:36
93
10Anklebiters
2:17
83
11Interlude: Holiday
1:09
73
12Proof
3:15
82
13Hate to See Your Heart Break
5:09
83
14(One of Those) Crazy Girls
3:32
82
15Interlude: I'm Not Angry Anymore
0:52
75
16Be Alone
3:40
77
17Future
7:52
86
Total Length: 1 hour, 4 minutes
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Added on: January 29, 2013