I'm not much of a music snob, and there's still a part of my heart that harkens lovingly back to the t(w)een years of my adolescent youth that now increasingly feels like a hastily fading dream (apologies, real adults)! Though I have to say that occasionally I have to humour myself in the nostalgia of music that symbolises so many good times that I had in my high school/college years, memories with friends, and my general trying to grow up. Paramore were one of those bands. Along with My Chemical Romance, Lostprophets, Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco, Paramore indulged the emo-pop-rock tween in my soul that thought she was 'alternative' when really she was as non-conforming as half of the 12-16 age bracket in the world, circa '04-'07. I could quote 'The Emo Song' by Adam and Andrew, but I'll leave that up to you ;)
Pushing the cringey embarrassments of youth aside however, we turn away from 'Misery Business' era Paramore all the way to 2013 where, two members down though still flame haired, Hayley Williams and Co are still throwing their pop-punk anthems to thirsty and impressionable lego-haired teens aching for an idol band to give their lives direction. Are Paramore still up to the cause? Well, with the latest song to be revealed from their forthcoming fourth album (imaginitively entitled Paramore), 'Still Into You' is... somewhat lacklustre, in regards to what Paramore can offer when they're at their best. In fact, it feels like a cheap Fall Out Boy song, especially in the melody. Even Williams' usual powerhouse vocal feels pretty tame. It's not a memorable song, in fact, it's borderline sickly and in writing this, listening to the song for the first time, I genuinely have no inclination to listen to the song again. For of what bite Paramore can muster when, like Fall Out Boy, they create genuinely good pop songs, 'Still Into You' falls far below the mark.
But seriously, I guess it's time to mourn my youth because I am most definitely a little old lady destined for 10 cats from here on in! But looking back on a decade of music that I have loved and, quite often, no longer love, it seems fitting to pick one of my favourite songs to be my birthday Flashback Friday!
Music has been so important to me in so many big and small ways, from the places I go, the people I bond with, the way I dress, my view points on life - it really is important to not underestimate the power that music can have over your life! Going through my iPod, I really struggled over what to choose, it's impossible to just choose one song to encapsulate this past decade of my life. The song that I chose surprised even me, but it holds a lot of nostalgia.
'I'm Not OK' by My Chemical Romance was one of those songs that my group of friends in high school knew inside out - alas, even my one friend, who only listens to R'n'B, knew all of the words due to us always singing it. It brings back a lot of memories when life and friendships were simpler, before our separate paths in life got in the way, at a time where we weren't necessarily popular with our classmates for petty reasons, and it felt like us against the world. For a period of time, this was our anthem! I can still hear us singing it at lunch times and walks home, even acting out the video, because we knew it so well.
Post Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge, my love of My Chemical Romance waned. I really didn't like The Black Parade bar 'Famous Last Words' and 'I Don't Love You', and I especially detest the title song! But Three Cheers will always have a small space in my heart, I still own a CD copy, and it's never entirely left my iPod since it was first synced circa 2004 (8 years!!!). Quite amusingly, looking back, it was The Emo Age!
Anyways, if you're reading this, it has been projected forward, as at the time of writing my birthday is yet to happen! Hopefully, it will be a good one and a positive next decade! :)
I follow Ian Watkins on Twitter. Fact. Yes, the twee fangirl in me appears to be persisting even in my impending evolution into adulthood. I began to make the transition into 'alternative' music around the age of 10-11 and, along with other bands that flirted with the mainstream (eg. Linkin Park, Evanescence, MCR, etc) Lostprophets were one of the first bands that I could definitely say that I was an utter fan of!
But anyway! a few Watkins-Re-Tweets in my Twitter feed later and I found myself watching this video, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised! I regard the first two Lostprophets albums, The Fake Sound of Progress and Start Something, with a sense of nostalgia, and The Liberation Transmission was a good pop album however, I wasn't amazed by their fourth album, The Betrayed. I found the lead track 'It's Not the End of the World..' rather weak so I didn't really put any effort into The Betrayed, and as a result, Lostprophets just slipped off my radar. I vaguely recall fifth album, Weapons being released a few months ago, but that was all.
'Jesus Walks' on the other hand, is a pleasant and surprising return to form! It's pure pop, a late summer anthem, and containing the great euphoric sing-a-long's that Lostprophets are known for. Everything is working here - the melody, the lyrics, it's all good! The song talks of having the strength to stand on your own two feet and the solidarity of believing in yourself, and flicking through some song teasers on iTunes, there appears to be some other tracks on the album that are growers too, so I may write a review up soon, which will be somewhat interesting for me as Lostprophets developed their sound taking a variety of influences in their first three albums (FSOP - new metal and experimental, Start Something - differed from song to song, Liberation Transmission - pop rock anthems), although the singles that I have heard from The Betrayed and Weapons seems to show them settling more definitely on a signiature sound.
On the other hand, check out the vid! Lostprophets tour the UK starting November 1st at Wolves Civic (hometown gig for me, should I go, should I go?)!
Wolverhampton Civic Hall (November 1) Preston 53 Degrees (2) O2 Academy Sheffield (3) Edinburgh HMV Picture House (5) Inverness Ironworks (6) O2 Apollo Manchester (8) Portsmouth Guildhall (9) London Alexandra Palace (10) Norwich UEA (12) Lincoln Engine Shed (13) Newport Centre (14) http://lostprophets.com/ https://twitter.com/lostprophets http://www.facebook.com/lostprophets
