Paramore - Monster: A Review
07-29-2011
- by Dante Alexander, Staff Mumbler
One of Paramore's latest releases is the emotionally-charged rock ballad "Monster." They still have legions of devoted fans, but has the loss of two key members affected their songwriting and overall performance.

When I first heard this song, I had mixed feelings about it. It comes across as simple, tactless, and as a very plain and standard format that the music industry has grown very familiar with. The first time I heard it, I thought it was one of the worst Paramore songs I'd ever heard, but then the next time it came around, and I found myself caught up in the melodies of Hayley Williams's voice. So which one is it then? Is this song worth listening to at all? Is it amazing? Is it terrible? Is it going to inspire yet another million teenage girls to adopt the same bright red hairstyle in attempt to express their "individuality?"


Originality comes mass produced in a bottle of hair dye?

Many fans have been growing steadily skeptical of the band since the departure of brothers Josh and Zac Farro (guitar and drums) from the lineup. Many believe that the band is changing and growing softer. Since the absence of the Farro brothers, there has also been some suspicion that Paramore is acting less like a band and more like a bunch of faceless musicians to stand in the shadows while Hayley Williams's ego is fed. And while these claims may be exaggerated, or at the very least a bit bitter and mean spirited in the wake of a changing lineup, it is nonetheless discernible that the band is changing. Gone seem to be the days of their fast paced, high energy pop, and there seem to be progressively less tracks like their hugest hits "Misery Business," "Crush," and "Ignorance." Instead, you get a band that ends up spitting out watered down tracks like, "The Only Exception," "That's what you get," and now, "Monster."



And while the reception of the fans has either been very positive or very negative towards the departure of the Farro brothers, it is clear that there is a changing structure in the music, this especially being evident in "Monster." Hayley's vocals, while not necessarily being any more impressive, are gaining better rhythms, more emotion, and seem to be sang more comfortably and fluidly- perhaps the band is moving towards a sound suits her better and that she is more comfortable with. Could this mean that the fans are right about the band gaining too much focus on her? Let's look at the other side of things: the instrumentals. Where Hayley's vocals are becoming much more pleasant and flow very well, the background instrumentals are suffering. In "Monster," before she started singing, I actually cringed- the rest of the band has never been this bad. Hayley is stealing the spotlight and seems to be ignoring the fact that the rest of Paramore is becoming weak and bland.


But of course you're ignoring it. "Ignorance is your new best friend," right Hayley?

But overall, even if you already consider Paramore to be pretty average, you're going to find "Monster" to be a fairly sub-par song. The vocals are good, but vocals can only do so much for a band. And in an effort that comes across as very standard, uninteresting radio-friendly pop-rock, Paramore has released yet another reason why Hayley can't do much in the spotlight without the Farro brothers there to help her along. The song isn't terrible, and if it comes on the radio, it isn't nearly bad enough to change the station in annoyance, but this is not a track you will be going out of your way to listen to. This song is only worth a 4.5 out of 10 rating.

But hey, devoted fans tend to listen to a band no matter how terrible they get, so this song should go over just fine...

Tags:   Josh Farro  Zac Farro  Paramore Monster  Misery Business  paramore crush  paramore ignorance  paramore monster  paramore hayley  

5 Comments
1. February 13, 2012 08:49 AM 2. February 12, 2012 06:34 AM 3. February 10, 2012 10:12 AM 4. February 10, 2012 05:09 AM 5. February 9, 2012 05:34 AM

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