American rock band Paramore achieved a major breakthrough in musical style with their sixth album, This Is Why, released on February 10, 2023 through Atlantic Records. The album marks the first musical collaboration since 2017's After Laughter and is the band's final release on the label. The album received high interest from fans and critics based on its overall style and themes.
This Is Why received widespread critical acclaim, with many critics reviewing it positively, noting that the album's musical style demonstrated the band's creative maturity.
The album was supported by four singles, including "This Is Why", "The News", "C'est Comme Ça" and "Running Out of Time". As always, Paramore pushes their musical style to new heights. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 64,000 copies, of which 47,000 were pure album sales. Subsequently, the band plans to release Re: This Is Why on October 6, 2023, a remix album covering arrangements and rewritten versions of songs from This Is Why by different artists.
Paramore's musical journey was interrupted after "After Laughter" in 2017, when the band members temporarily stopped writing and recording, and explored new possibilities in music and other fields. Lead singer Hayley Williams released the single "Uncomfortably Numb" in 2019 in collaboration with the American music group American Football, and has released two solo albums, "Petals for Armor" (2020) and "Flowers for Vases / Descansos". (2021). She has also started to focus on her own hair colour brand, Good Dye Young, and hosted the weekly BBC Sounds series Everything Is Emo. Zac Farro is working on his project HalfNoise, releasing an EP and two albums in succession.
As discussions about their sixth album began in 2020, Hayley revealed the band drew a lot of musical inspiration from their upbringing, emphasizing their desire to create a more guitar-driven sound.
In 2022, the band confirmed to enter the studio to work on a new album. "This Is Why" has a strong post-punk music style, which is deeply influenced by bands such as Foals and Talking Heads. Several reviewers described the album as a "confident, edgy post-punk soundscape" and saw it as a vivid expression of anxiety about the pandemic. The album features sharp electronic sounds and dance music elements, showing the ever-changing face of Paramore's music.
Critics had high expectations for the album, believing that it was not only a tribute to their early music, but also a showcase for their new voice in the current music scene.
Ahead of the album's release, Paramore cleared its official Instagram in September 2022 and redesigned its website to promote the new work. The band then released a never-before-seen single and planned a global tour. This series of actions attracted widespread attention from music fans and critics.
After the album was released, it received rave reviews. Many critics praised the album's musicality and writing level, believing that it was Paramore's most mature and profound musical creation. Reviewers noted that the album successfully captures some of the subtle changes in contemporary culture.
As the album title suggests, Paramore directly explores real-life challenges and vulnerabilities and demonstrates a fearless exploration of new musical experiments.
At the 66th Grammy Awards in 2023, the album won the Best Rock Album award, and the album's title song "This Is Why" also won the Best Alternative Music Performance, which was an important milestone for the band. With the successful release of the new album, people can't help but wonder what impact these evolutions in musical style will have on Paramore's future creations?