They credit Jimmy Eat World as inspirations (“I still can’t believe we’re on tour with Jimmy Eat World,” Hayley Williams said.) and are more likely to end up donating time in a soup kitchen than doing time in rehab.
Paramore’s rise to the top wasn’t filled with excess and excuses. They’ve never stood for the booze-filled antics of their craft’s forefathers. No, their vice is their music. And on their Grammy® nominated, sophomore album, Riot! they’ve tailored it to near new-pop perfection.
“(We want) to show people we’re still a bunch of kids,” Hayley said. “We just happen to be in a band that’s doing a lot right now.”
In touch with reality and humbled by their notoriety, the band is more than just another flash in the pan. Paramore gets it. They intimately connect with their fans on a level few acts can achieve. Because, not long ago, they were those fans.
“It never gets old,” Zac Farro said. “It’s so amazing. People tell me, ‘I bought your CD.’ And I’m like, ‘Really?’”
When you talk with Zac (drums) or Hayley (vocals) or Josh Farro (guitar) or Jeremy Davis (bass), you get the sense they’re not just sticking to the company line. They genuinely mean what they say.
”We didn’t really know it was a possibility,” Hayley said when asked about the band’s first impressions on being named Hard Rock’s Artist of the Year. “It’s a huge honor.”
An honor that’s well deserved.
