3.5 out of 5 stars

For anyone like me, who got really excited when Paramore stated in an interview with Alternative Press magazine that they expected the follow-up to their hit album Riot! to sound like a mix between Thrice , Mew , and Arcade Fire , you might be a little disappointed with their latest release, brand new eyes.  But only a little bit. For the most part, Paramore stick to their word, creating a dense rock album with stronger guitar riffs, moodier soundscapes, and darker themes throughout. But none of this will change the fact that Paramore are a pop-band, so they don’t test the waters of strange time signatures, rule-breaking ideas, etc. Paramore have never been groundbreaking at all, but brand new eyes struts their best songwriting yet (at least for the first half of the record). One of the album’s best tracks, “Careful,” is full of energy and angst throughout, but it overshadows the songs that slow things down a bit.  “Ignorance,”  another powerful track, makes a wise single choice because its formula has worked before: the song is very similar to Riot!’s “Misery Business.” Also, the new incarnation wields some off-kilter harmonies and a chance for a guitar solo that is completely… ignored. But no matter how good the guitar riffs are (see: “Turn If Off”) or how much thrust is in the drum playing, the main attraction of Paramore shall forever be Hayley Williams. She has some of the best lungs in rock music today, but she doesn’t always know how to use them (see: “Looking Up”). Nearly every song is vocally impressive, but plenty of songs have lackluster choruses (see: “Feeling Sorry”) and melodies that keep Paramore from truly being as great as they are held to be. Basically though, the way I see all of Paramore’s albums is that they have 3-star music with a vocalist that garners an extra half-star.