Although confusing in it’s genre shifting, the album is filled with a number of new artists ready for a bigger platform and audience.
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Album Rating6
Atlantic Recording Company
When it was first announced earlier this month that Paramore would be re-releasing their hit album This Is Why, I’ll admit that I was skeptical of the concept. Despite being a diehard Paramore fan myself, I’ve generally never been a fan of remix albums in any sense. But honestly, after listening to this album, I can say that I’m now of two minds. Since their debut in 2004, Paramore has always been known for challenging the image that comes with their musical identity. From the angsty teenage rage of Riot!, to the 80s neon-psychedelic depression of After Laughter, the band has found countless innovative ways of reinventing its sound for almost two decades. After listening to Re: This Is Why, I believe that this album is Paramore’s most experimental and artistically driven release yet. And the most interesting part: the band doesn’t even feature on the majority of the tracks, but rather features artists that inspired their process.
Whilst I don’t think that many of the tracks on this album can capture the essence of the original album’s emotional core, the revamped interpretations that I was instantly drawn to from the album were as follows: ‘The News’ (Re: The Linda Lindas), ‘C’est Comme Ça’ (Re: Wet Leg), ‘You First’ (Re: Remi Wolf) and ‘Liar’ (Re: Romy).
‘The News’ (Re, The Linda Lindas) provides an interesting dichotomy of the traditional rock-based guitar riffs of the original, but with an 80s synth-like energy that is most apparent in the pre-chorus. Personally, aside from the verses, ‘The News’ (Re: The Linda Lindas) is the most similar reinterpretation to the original song on the entire album. The controlled yet raw vocals of lead singer Bela Salazar on the chorus permeate a sense of urgency that gives the already self-aware nature of the song a more aggressive edge than the original.
‘C’est Comme Ça’ (Re: Wet Leg) is simplistic, yet effective in its composition. The repeated bass rhythm from bassist Ellis Durand, matched with lead singer Rhian Teasdale’s signature monotone delivery oddly gives this song a quicker pace than anticipated. Whilst I do believe that Wet Leg was successful in making this song their own, on the flip side, the tone of the song is eerily reminiscent of the majority of their past hits, which in turn shifts the initial identity of the song to a completely different perspective than the original.
‘You First’ (Re: Remi Wolf) provides a welcome sense of optimism to the album. Wolf’s use of multilayer harmonies in the verses and the chorus, combined with the acoustic and electric guitar riffs, creates what I can honestly say is the best chorus composition that I’ve heard in a very long time. The sickly-sweet melodies heavily juxtapose the heavy nature of the lyricism in such a way that marries the two concepts in a strange union of joy and despair. All I’ll say is, if you were to only listen to one song off this album, this is the one to watch.
‘Liar’ (Re: Romy) is probably one of the only tracks on the album that manages to capture the emotional perspective of the original. The harmonies between Romy and Paramore’s Hayley Williams in the chorus of this song are nothing short of perfection, with an orchestral composition only furthering the ethereal nature of this track.
To conclude, whilst I can appreciate Paramore’s efforts to highlight rising artists in the industry with their platform, the tonal disconnect between each track makes the album often disjointed at times. Despite its bright spots, I can’t say I’d listen to it religiously.
Paramore’s Re: This Is Why is out now via Atlantic Recording Corporation, check out Foals’ ‘RE’ version of ‘This Is Why’ here:
