Opinions after a year...

[the1]

RIOT! has been out for over a year now, so we've had plenty of time to let it all sink in.

How do we feel about the band and the album now?

 

I just don't think RIOT! is anywhere near as good as AWKIF. For me, it just lacks the rock punch and emotion, in a sense it's just too poppy and not energetic enough. Sure the songs are good, but that is all. It's just overwhelmingly average. Pessimist, Miracle and Born For This and When It Rains were the only real highlights. The new version of Hallelugah (sp?) was crap, and the synth-electronic bits just didnt work for me.

I still love the band, but their MTV status is gettin on my nerves. Not their fault, but people all think that they are just a pop band, so the rock credentials gained on AWKIF seemed to have been pushed aside. Simply put: people think I'm giry because I like them, and it shouldn't be like that.

 

HOW BOUT YOU??

[ninski]

well. i think that riot! isn't that bad.but it did lack that "rock punch" that awkif had.

awkif is still my favorite record.

[Wiking]

I disagree. I actually think that RIOT! is a better album than AWKIF. They are both great albums, but on RIOT! they show a more varied side of themselves. Songs like Misery Business and That's What You Get are totally different, and appeals to different kinds of emotions, so to speak. Lyrically they are also showing that they have become more mature. So overall I think that RIOT! is a better album, but overall both albums are different and that's always a good thing.

 

As to MTV part I don't really care about. A band that has such huge success, sells so well and are young will always appeal to a certain audience, but I think the band are good to control. And being so much in interaction with their fans also helps to keep control. And what people think of me I don't really care about thats there problem and not mine.

[No_Sir!]

yeha i have to agree with,ninski. Dont get me wrong i love riot! and its always in the car but awkif just has that edge. The words are deep and the music fits right along with it.

[BABsxo.]

i cant see paramore ever wanting to make an album like riot again, i'll put it that way. i think thats what this 'final riot' gubbins is all about - theyre calling an end to an era.

its a great cult album, but little more than that. every track is anthemic, but not as easy to relate to and understand as awnif.

i think their aim for riot was to reach out to people, and get their attention. i think paramore have earned their status, and i cant see them getting any 'bigger'. by no means to i think theyve peaked - i think their success should level out from here on in.

 

for album #3, i too would like to see paramore take a step back to the meaningful sound that got them heard in the first place. it would be nice for them to put out something which their fans will love, but which floosies who only watch mtv hits wont.

dont get me wrong, i love riot, and it probably will always be one of my favourite albums - but i just dont get the same vibe from it as awnif. riot makes you grit your teeth and sing along, where as all we know is falling makes you think.

[rcblinker]

When I first listened to it I thought it was a lot better than AWKIF, but now I realize I like that album a lot more. Sure the quality of the sound and mixing of Riot! is better but I still like AWKIF more.

[waketheearth]

i cant see paramore ever wanting to make an album like riot again, i'll put it that way. i think thats what this 'final riot' gubbins is all about - theyre calling an end to an era.

its a great cult album, but little more than that. every track is anthemic, but not as easy to relate to and understand as awnif.

i think their aim for riot was to reach out to people, and get their attention. i think paramore have earned their status, and i cant see them getting any 'bigger'. by no means to i think theyve peaked - i think their success should level out from here on in.

 

for album #3, i too would like to see paramore take a step back to the meaningful sound that got them heard in the first place. it would be nice for them to put out something which their fans will love, but which floosies who only watch mtv hits wont.

dont get me wrong, i love riot, and it probably will always be one of my favourite albums - but i just dont get the same vibe from it as awnif. riot makes you grit your teeth and sing along, where as all we know is falling makes you think.

 

 

I couldn't have said it better myself

[clowdiaa]

there's a reason why they picked david bendeth to produce their record, cuz they wanted a poppy sound, a sound that i really didnt l like. awkif is more deep in so many more ways then emotions and sound. the chords and rhythms are much more complex and its so RAWWWWWW.

 

 

awkif>riot! hands down.

 

 

i really hope their next record is a lot more rough around the edges and scary and complex and raw and real and different and crazy.

 

 

if i had come across with riot! instead of awkif first, i wouldve never become the fan that i am now.

 

riot! is a good pop record, but theyre better then just a good pop record.

[thebrowncoat]

I still think it's really hard for people, especially long-time fans, to separate the fact that AWKIF was the first album they heard from Paramore from purely judging the quality of the songs.

 

That's not to say RIOT! is better or worse - to be honest, there are things I love about both albums - but I think it's very hard to evaluate AWKIF objectively - purely on the basis of the quality of the songs and the record itself - when it's the album that made you fall in love with the band.

 

RIOT! is undoubtedly a breakout album in a way that AWKIF never could have been. The band was still very young and very raw when they made AWKIF - and that quality shows through on the album in a lot of places. RIOT! is tremendously more polished, much tighter and, imo, the singing and playing is significantly better.

 

My favorite Paramore songs span both albums - "Franklin" from AWKIF, "Miracle" from RIOT! - and both albums have songs I just don't think work - "Whoa" on AWKIF (although it absolutely works live) and, to some extent, "Fences" on RIOT!

 

"Misery Business" was a huge single in a way no song on AWKIF ever was or could have been - and it looks like "That's What You Get" is going to also have a decent amount of success on radio and MTV. Those are good things - and those are both very strong songs.

 

For their 3rd record, I think the band's really going to face an interesting balancing act. I think they're going to want to make a very personal record that reflects a lot of their influences and loves - but they're also going to have to balance what a large majority of their fanbase wants to hear and what they really excel at playing - great pop punk. That's not to say they couldn't excel at playing and writing other types of songs - in fact, based on what I've heard, I think they absolutely could - but they're going to want to be really careful to grow with their fanbase, not leave it completely behind.

 

Picking the right producer is going to be a huge key - someone who can really bring out the rock edge to their sound, push them to continuously improve in their playing, performing and songwriting, but also help them build songs that work across the broad spectrum they need to cover.

 

The real challenge I see for them is creating a record that takes that huge step forward without turning its back on popular success. It can absolutely be done - and I think they have the talent to do it - but it's a very difficult thing to do.

[Skylet]

I still think it's really hard for people, especially long-time fans, to separate the fact that AWKIF was the first album they heard from Paramore from purely judging the quality of the songs.

 

That's not to say RIOT! is better or worse - to be honest, there are things I love about both albums - but I think it's very hard to evaluate AWKIF objectively - purely on the basis of the quality of the songs and the record itself - when it's the album that made you fall in love with the band.

 

RIOT! is undoubtedly a breakout album in a way that AWKIF never could have been. The band was still very young and very raw when they made AWKIF - and that quality shows through on the album in a lot of places. RIOT! is tremendously more polished, much tighter and, imo, the singing and playing is significantly better.

 

My favorite Paramore songs span both albums - "Franklin" from AWKIF, "Miracle" from RIOT! - and both albums have songs I just don't think work - "Whoa" on AWKIF (although it absolutely works live) and, to some extent, "Fences" on RIOT!

 

"Misery Business" was a huge single in a way no song on AWKIF ever was or could have been - and it looks like "That's What You Get" is going to also have a decent amount of success on radio and MTV. Those are good things - and those are both very strong songs.

 

For their 3rd record, I think the band's really going to face an interesting balancing act. I think they're going to want to make a very personal record that reflects a lot of their influences and loves - but they're also going to have to balance what a large majority of their fanbase wants to hear and what they really excel at playing - great pop punk. That's not to say they couldn't excel at playing and writing other types of songs - in fact, based on what I've heard, I think they absolutely could - but they're going to want to be really careful to grow with their fanbase, not leave it completely behind.

 

Picking the right producer is going to be a huge key - someone who can really bring out the rock edge to their sound, push them to continuously improve in their playing, performing and songwriting, but also help them build songs that work across the broad spectrum they need to cover.

 

The real challenge I see for them is creating a record that takes that huge step forward without turning its back on popular success. It can absolutely be done - and I think they have the talent to do it - but it's a very difficult thing to do.

 

WOW

THATS ALOT OF WORDS

 

i do agree with the producer thing they have the talent just they need someoone to help focus it

[the1]

Yeah I also agree

They need to gain back a sense of urgency that got lost on RIOT! It was very much just summer music for me, with no real depth. I actually thought the guitar playing and bass playing was much better on AWKIF, especially Jeremy. Zack and Hayley did get alot bettter though. I guess the thing I liked the most about AWKIF is that they just seemed like a bunch of kids who loved music, whereas now due to marketing and their crappy label they seem to be focused on more for the gender of their singer and their age rather than for their music.

I think they should leave Fueled By Ramen and get a different producer. And induce Taylor!!!

[Jammer]

I can kinda agree that Riot! isn't as 'rock' as AWKIF was: Riot! doesn't have as many of these punchy guitar riffs that AWKIF had.

 

But I see Riot! as more acessible: look how much success they've had with Riot! since it came out: so a more pop record helped them get more coverage and to get to more people. It's probably a simialr dilemma for any band: do you stick to what you do good or do you attempt to reach out to new fans?

 

So the way I see it, since Paramore's gained a lot of new fans recently, so it seems reasonable to assume album 3 would be closer in character to AWKIF.

 

And as for the MTV thing, loads of people get wound up about bands appearing on MTV all the time, but MTV's such a huge thing that if you get played on there then it's bound to be seen by loads of people.

[travel_hymn]

I liked the synth-electronic bits of Hallelujah, that's what made me like the song even more.

[Defiance]

RIOT! was more technically well done, as in guitar parts where more complex, etc and hayley really showed off her vocal range (hallelujah) but i think AWKIF just everything slotted together better, it seems more that everything is tuned to be like that together, but with RIOT! in a way it seems slightly more like they tried to bust out an album that can show off their talents and draw attention to them, more than make something deep and meaningful, tbh i get bored of RIOT! quite a lot, but AWKIF just never seems to do that i can listen to that album on repeat all day and be happy, also i would like more songs like pressure, that song is just paramore for me. next album i think is going to be less showing off than RIOT! and will be a lot more meaningful, i think whatever problems they went through earlier this year, some of that may come back at us as music, but alas lets wait out and see what the future brings.

[thebrowncoat]

WOW

THATS ALOT OF WORDS

 

i do agree with the producer thing they have the talent just they need someoone to help focus it

 

I was an English major. I can write - a lot haha

 

Yeah I also agree

They need to gain back a sense of urgency that got lost on RIOT! It was very much just summer music for me, with no real depth. I actually thought the guitar playing and bass playing was much better on AWKIF, especially Jeremy. Zack and Hayley did get alot bettter though. I guess the thing I liked the most about AWKIF is that they just seemed like a bunch of kids who loved music, whereas now due to marketing and their crappy label they seem to be focused on more for the gender of their singer and their age rather than for their music.

I think they should leave Fueled By Ramen and get a different producer. And induce Taylor!!!

 

I just don't know that I agree. I think We Are Broken, When It Rains and Miracle are as deep as any songs they've written - certainly from a lyrical perspective.

 

They'd be fools to leave FBR. You can't ask for better exposure than they've gotten over the past year. Very, very few bands have the kind of breakout success Paramore's had in the past year - undoubtedly, that's due to their talent, but it's also due to the incredibly strong team they have working with them.

[Jorgi]

They'd be fools to leave FBR.

 

This.

 

 

Anyway, for me i don't think i can seperate which of their albums i like "most". To me they're really two entirely different records... AWKIF was a lot more raw; lyrically; instrumentally; even how it was produced, which you kind of would expect from a debut album- especially a debut album from a bunch of teenagers (not intended to sound condescending- i'm a teenager myself, derr), whereas Riot! is far more polished... But that's not even a bad thing. You can see how they've progressed and matured as a band and people in every aspect, and their live riot! shows are amazing- i wish i could go to the final riot tour, because since it's been released their live shows have gotten so so good, more original more exciting... Bah.

 

Riot! was marketed far, far differently to AWKIF, as we've seen by them rocketing to pop-punk stardom (wooo misery business etc). But as records i think they're both powerful.

I love AWKIF and Riot! equally, not trying to sound like "better than thou" i just do- i can't distinguish which one of them i like more, they both have elements i adore.

 

For their third record i'd really, really love to see more of what they're starting to do in their live shows... The originality and the power and the atmosphere and all that... I can't wait to see what they come up with, to be honest.

[indabisofmisery]

i don't necessarily think that one album is better than the other, as i agree with what jorgi said.

 

i just think that RIOT! is more grown-up, for lack of a better term. the reason being that when you go to a show now and hear them play their old stuff, you're like "wow, i wonder what that would have sounded like if they had recorded it 2 years later." you know? i think hayley's voice is much more developed now and that's part of the reason why RIOT! appeals to me a bit more, which is not to say that it was better than awkif.

 

[thebrowncoat]

This.

 

Are you agreeing with me or disagreeing? Now I'm confused lol

[Jorgi]

Sorry, i'm agreeing

[Andrew]

At first, it took me a pretty long time for me to "love" Riot in the way I loved AWKIF. But now, as the thread says "opinions after a year" - mine has changed. I probably listen to Riot more than awkif now, but personally if I had to choose between the two, then it'd be very close, but it'd be awkif for me.

 

I personally don't see the MTV thing being a problem... or not in the UK anyway... I mean, MTVTWO never played Misery Business - the only song they've played is That's What You Get. And it took a re-release of MB to get it to chart in the UK singles chart (top 40) So luckily they've not got "super massive" over here, or IMO anyway...

 

Still, the differences between awkif and riot make it interesting to see what they do for album #3

[BABsxo.]

I couldn't have said it better myself

 

paha, why thank you

 

and yer, i agree with most of the comments here - i cant really say which album i 'prefere'. i like them both for different reasons.

but, since im a slightly more long-term fan, awnif wins on sentimental grounds.

 

and i too agree if paramore can team the clean-cut technicality and instrumental talent of riot with the 'raw' emotion of awnif, they'll be on to a real winner.

[the1]

I personally think that although they've got sonically better live, Josh and Jerm seem so...boring. They used to be active and jump around alot, but in most recent vids I've seen they just don't have the energy they used to.

[BABsxo.]

^yeah, i just dont think they can do that as much along to riots tracks.

then again, out of the two times i've seen paramore live, they were MUCH better the second time around. really was such a vast improvement.

i know jeremy was doing a lot of mincing about that evening. i was too far away from josh to tell what he was up to lol.

[waketheearth]

I personally think that although they've got sonically better live, Josh and Jerm seem so...boring. They used to be active and jump around alot, but in most recent vids I've seen they just don't have the energy they used to.

 

Ahh I noticed that! I was right in front of Josh and I seriously wanted to see him go crazy and bust out his old headbanging like he used to but it didn't happen. Who knows. Hopefully when the 3rd record comes out and they play those songs live he'll be energetic again

[Catie]

LEAVE FBR?!?! HELL NO.

id be so mad! if they did that