EP Review: Paramore – Singles Club

As everyone knows with Paramore, two crucial members from the band made their departure in 2010, which left a bitter taste in the others’ mouths. Fans speculated where Hayley Williams and co would go from this news. With the release of Monster they left fans and the Farro brothers in astonishment at producing something that they would never forget. Monster was the turning point for Paramore because they managed to take their music to more of a higher level which was so fresh as the sound was heavier and more melodic.

The Singles Club is a compilation of songs that the band released as a single each month from October to December 2011. There are three songs on the album which gives a glimpse of where Paramore left things after Monster. The three songs are Hello Cold World, Renegade and In The Mourning. Renegade begins with an explosive and catchy riff which would have anyone bouncing off their toes from the very first second of hearing it. The drum roll and guitar riff provided by Taylor York shows how far they’ve come from Brand New Eyes and Monster by making their music so much more dramatic.

Renegade deals with the Farro’s departure as the lyrics suggest “Well the grass wasn’t green enough here/After watering it with my tears/I’m not sure where you went/Now we are just past tense.” This shows how heartbroken Williams was over the break-up of the group’s friendship. The emotion that the members put across in Renegade just shows how powerful the song is to them. It proves one thing – even with the departure of two crucial members, Paramore still manage to make the music sound grandiose.

It is evident that Paramore have pushed into directions that fans didn’t expect and have explored the hinges of their imagination even more since the days of Monster.
– Mark Wong

In The Mourning is one of the tracks that show Paramore have incorporated and experimented with different genres as this song tackles the country folk genre. The song has many similarities to Stevie Nicks’ Landslide which is understandable as all the members come from Franklin, Tennessee. So fuelling their country background and channeling it through the music is a wonderful direction to see from Paramore as they are becoming more ambitious with their music. The song once again deals with the break-up but from guitarist Taylor York’s perspective as he had to choose whether to carry on with Paramore or go with his best friends. The lyrics are so poignant from York’s perspective as this must have been the most difficult decision to make of his life so far –  “The biggest part of me/You were the greatest thing /And now you’re just a memory/To let go of.”

Hello Cold World relays Williams’ perspective of the world. She talks about how cruel and cold the world can be but asks people to deal with this by making a difference. The song oozes the classic Paramore sound we found on albums such as Riot! Bassist Jeremy Davis’ bass line remains prominent throughout the song and drives the track wonderfully. The way Williams portrays the world as a cold one reflects how mature they are by dealing with current affairs “We can hope and we can pray that everything would work out fine/But you can’t just stay out on your knees/The revolution is outside/You wanna make a difference/Get out and go and get it.”

The Singles Club is a wonderful compilation of songs from Paramore that gives fans a glimpse of what to expect from the band’s fourth album which they are currently recording now. It is clearly evident that Paramore have pushed into directions that fans didn’t expect and have explored the hinges of their imagination even more since the days of Monster. Hope is definitely restored for fans because if the fourth album is anything like The Singles Club, then every fan will be in for a rollercoaster of an album!