Before their Manchester show, Alex Davies jumped on their tour bus and found out what it’s like to be a teenage band dealing with a world obsessed with their lead singer… How does all this success feel?
 | | Hayley Williams |
Hayley Williams: "It’s crazy to think that it’s actually successful, venues are selling out quick and kids are really enthusiastic about the music, more than they’ve ever been. "It’s just awesome to think that kids are coming out every night to see you play, rather than whatever band’s headlining. It’s just great, the whole room’s filled with kids that share the same passion for your music that you do." With the new fame, you’re getting a lot of press, but it’s always Hayley on the cover; does this get to you? Hayley: "It kinda bugs all of us, we thought it would maybe be the whole band, but I guess they’re really into when a band has a female in it and pushing it, because it’s different I guess, and there’s not many. I understand that part of it, but I think that, in the US, it’s something we’ve had a lot of time to make clear, that it’s a band, it’s not Hayley. | "It’s helped so much, MySpace is ridiculous, everyone has one, parents have one! It’s really cool that it’s turned out to be such a big thing." | | Jeremy on how the internet has helped Paramore |
"And over here, things have picked up quicker, and we haven’t had chance to grasp it and say ‘hold on, this is still a band!’, but I think we’re in the process of still proving that." With every date sold out without a huge single or massive airtime, you have to put a lot of it down to the internet… Jeremy Davis: "Even if you’re just a local band, you can get so much recognition. It’s just a case of giving someone a link, and they can hear you straight away, whereas if it wasn’t (online) you’d have to go through inviting people out and hoping they’d show up. It’s helped so much, MySpace is ridiculous, everyone has one, parents have one! It’s really cool that it’s turned out to be such a big thing." Recently, you’ve been sporting a new image, where did the inspiration for it come from? Hayley: "We wanted to do something different than we’d ever done before, and on this UK tour, we’re doing something different again. We had a chance to grow in the States over the last year and a half, and really had a chance to show people who we were, in the beginning, no flashiness, nothing except for just us.
 | | Jeremy Davis |
"We grew up from that and the kids grew with us, I felt, so we really wanted to do something different. We dressed up a lot, everything was a lot darker, more mature I think. And here, we’ve stepped back a bit. It’s still part of us, but what we’re doing here is much more raw, we’re going back to t-shirts, but we still look like one unit. I’m wearing a t-shirt that says 'Paramore Is A Band' to show it." On All We Know Is Falling, your small town roots are clear. Now that you’ve seen the world, will your new material reflect this? Josh Farro: "I think it definitely will. It’s so rare that you find people in the States that get to travel around the world and experience different cultures, and we get to do that, and there are so many different feelings you get from being in different towns and different countries and I think it’s really inspiring. Especially the architecture and old buildings here, I think writing has a lot to do with experience, and since we’ve experienced this I think it will definitely effect it." The Summer Tic EP showcased a heavier sound. Is that an indication of what we can expect with your new material? Josh: "It all depends on the songs that we come up with and if we feel that they call for screaming, and all that aggressive stuff then we’ll put it in there, but we definitely don’t wanna become like Underoath or anything, because they’re one of our favourite bands, but at the same time we’re just not that kinda band. But we might throw in a couple of sick breakdowns." What’s next for the band - a bit of time at home?
 | | Josh Farro |
Hayley: "Yeah, as soon as this tour’s over, we’re flying home to sleep! We’re just gonna relax for a bit, but we have to think about the new record, and get in that mindset, so we’ll start writing and practicing together - it should be great." I read on your blog that you were having a patch of writer’s block - has that passed? Hayley: "Josh is freakin’ throwin' ‘em out every second, he’s writing so many songs, and I’m kinda having a slow start. But the things that we are coming up with and completing, I think are wonderful, I’m really proud of them. "I think that it’s a step in a new direction for us, but also staying true to who we are as a band. It’s going to be great, I feel it’s a lot more honest on my part and I think that Josh has grown so much with his instrument; it’s going to be a lot of fun." |
