AsterTracks 307: Where I wanted to be in February

As well documented earlier this year I was not totally in love with Paramore’s last record. To me This is Why was far too derivative and didn’t really feel like a proper Paramore entry, especially when stacked against both their self-titled record and After Laughter, the latter of which is still one of my favorite records of all time. Now, only eight months later the band has released a response to that album and on this one they are bringing lots of artists from their influence and proximity. To me, before I even heard the album, this was more what I was looking for; a collection of tracks born from collaborating with the community around you feels like something this band has never done and sounded like just the shake up I needed from the trio. While I try to stay away from the overall opinion from any fanbase I have seen that a lot of people are really underwhelmed by this one and I’m sort of surprised given just how much I’m resonating with it but that is what it’s all about after all.

The title track on the record was done by Foals who, aside from the name, I’m not too familiar with. Honestly the instrumental they present is stronger, that bassline was made to be behind a more atmospheric art punk track. When they bring that synth around it’s really good as well and the vocal stems from the verse are a cherry on top. My only two complaints on this one is that I don’t think Hayley Williams’ vocal from that chorus sounds stellar isolated and the take of her saying “why” is maybe a bit overused. Alas the track is six minutes and never really feels tiring.

The Linda Lindas, whose last album I wish I had spent more time with, did “The News.” It’s sort of impressive that they added so little yet in context I now see that the original track was missing so much. The little spices in the production, the added backing vocals, all that filled in space makes it all so much better. Inverse of the title track this chorus works better in a crowd and makes those lyrics much less clunky. The added layers they add to that bridge are incredible as well and maybe my favorite added bit to the remix.

There are two new versions of “Running Out of Time,” one by Panda Bear and one by Zane Lowe. Panda Bear remixes the song to serve as the groundwork for a whole new one and while I really admire what was aimed at, I don’t think it works for me personally. Zane on the other hand did a fantastic job of churning out a club banger. The trance beats are a really nice twist on the original recording and all the fake out endings hit so hard especially on first listen. I think this is the one song that I walk away preferring the original version, but I know Zane was a big fan of it on the record’s release as well. It’s also just nice to see him here especially when he’s more of an interviewer and only does occasional remixes as musical output.

I came down hard on “C’est Comme Ca” in my original review for taking inspiration from modern post-punk without really doing anything to make the song a Paramore song. That’s why I think it was perfect to choose Wet Leg to rework the track. The duo doesn’t offer a remix but instead does a straight cover of the track where they don’t actually change all that much, but they demonstrate exactly what I was talking about. This is an actual post-punk band doing the post-punk song and it’s all the richer for it. I know it’s not exactly the indie blog opinion to have but this is my favorite band in the genre right now and I’m happy that after all these months I get to see them deliver on something I wished any competent band would do this album cycle.

DOMi and JD BECK deliver a remix of what was a low spot on the record for me in “Big Man, Little Dignity.” There isn’t a whole lot to say about this one but it’s a whimsical little remix that sounds ready for edits, segues and video and goes over nicely on the record.

Remi Wolf did a rather involved rendition of “You First,” in fact I think it’s totally fair to say she put in the most effort amongst all these artists. Instead of a remix or cover Remi put together something of a sequel or response to the original, keeping the main choruses but even at that turns it into her own style. Sure, Wet Leg delivered something I was hoping for, but Remi Wolf delivered something I didn’t know I needed. I haven’t spoken too much about her last record Juno, but that album is an absolute masterpiece, and this is solidifying her space as a favorite artist of all time, let alone any genre she’d like to dip her toes into.

I’m not normally a fan of Bartees Strange and to be honest I wasn’t huge on “Figure 8” as a track but together they really took me by surprise. To me the slower, deeper instrumental serves the themes of the track in a stronger way than the original. The original synth-hook shows up here as a wider tool of the overall instrumental and it’s quite interesting. Also, I can’t tell if Bartees recorded new vocal stems, or these are Hayley’s steeped way down but either way they’re working for me.

The following “Liar” and “Crave” are redone by Romy and Claud, two artists I’m not really familiar with at all but did good jobs overall. I enjoyed these on the record because they reminded me of Hayley’s two solo records, and they still do now but in a different way. “Liar” as a duet is emotionally devastating and “Crave” sort of serves as an acoustic version with a different vocalist. Both sort of play in the same spaces on and off the record and they’re still strong tracks, maybe even stronger now.

“Thick Skull,” redone by Julien Baker, had to be my most anticipated track here. Not only have I been a major boygenius fan this year, but this was my favorite song on the original project. The instrumental breaks on the Paramore version still play in my head throughout random parts of the day and have given me a lot of inspiration on creative projects. Julien makes this hers without actually changing a lot and the cover really captures her spirit. I’m not sure if this one is better but it’s at least just as good.

There is one “new” song in “Sanity,” a track that lyrically comes from the self-titled era and instrumentally comes from After Laughter. Both are apparent, the AL synth is there and enhances the track even in never having left its demo form and the clapping percussion reminds me of some of my favorite tracks in the band’s history. Hayley drives on real life experience as opposed to what she does or does not do and ponders on the void of loneliness over a chorus so infectious I knew it before the track was over the first time.

The first time I heard This is Why I was really disappointed. At the end of the first run through my partner and I had a conversation about how the impact of these new tracks was so underwhelming that it was almost worth writing off this cycle entirely. This time we listened to the remixes while driving on the highway and were absolutely blown away by track after track. We listened to After Laughter right after and felt like we were so back in it. It’s not just personal though, the element of community as well as the vast array of styles and genres while always feeling like a body of work; this is what I wanted a Paramore album to be. This is Why was a fine record, Re: This is Why is a career height and a definite album to keep in mind now that album of the year is only around the corner.

I loved this record

1. This is Why (Re: Foals)
2. The News (Re: The Linda Lindas)
3. Running Out of Time (Re: Panda Bear)
4. Running Out of Time (Re: Zane Lowe)
5. C'est Comme Ca (Re: Wet Leg)
6. Big Man, Little Dignity (Re: DOMi & JD BECK)
7. You First (Re: Remi Wolf)
8. Figure 8 (Re: Bartees Strange)
9. Liar (Re: Romy)
10. Crave (Re: Claud)
11. Thick Skull (Re: Julien Baker)
12. Sanity [demo]

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