Paramore returns with a record that sounds like the world it was made in: anxious, wired, and just barely holding it together. This Is Why is the band’s sixth album, and it is their most pointed work to date — ten tracks of post-punk tension and pop melody that trade the arena-rock catharsis of their earlier records for something sharper and more adult. It is a record about being exhausted by the news, by other people, and by your own worst instincts.
Title Track Sets the Tone
The album opens with “This Is Why,” a jittery, bass-driven track about the urge to stay inside rather than face the world. The band lock into a groove that owes as much to Talking Heads as it does to anything in their own catalog. “The News” follows with the same nervous energy, a track that turns doomscrolling into a hook.
“Running Out of Time” is the first real curveball — a funkier, more sardonic cut about chronic lateness as a personality flaw. It works better than it has any right to.
C’est Comme Ça and the Middle Stretch
“C’est Comme Ça” leans into the French post-punk tradition, all deadpan delivery and clipped guitars. It is the shortest track here and one of the most effective. “Big Man, Little Dignity” targets a specific type of egotist, and while the lyrics land, the music never quite catches fire the way the first four tracks do.
“You First” restores the momentum. It is a snarling, competitive track about getting your retaliation in first. “Figure 8” is the heaviest thing here, a knot of anger and self-loathing that resolves into a genuine release. These two tracks form the album’s emotional core.
Liar, Crave, and the Slowdown
“Liar” and “Crave” are the quiet ones, and they are a deliberate comedown. Both are about wanting something — a person, a feeling, a moment — and both are more vulnerable than anything the band has recorded in years.
“Thick Skull” closes the album with a confession of stubbornness and self-sabotage, building slowly and ending abruptly. It is the most direct lyric the band has ever written.
The Writer’s Picks
These are the tracks that stand up best on repeat:
- “This Is Why”
- “The News”
- “C’est Comme Ça”
- “You First”
- “Figure 8”
- “Running Out of Time”
A Short Album That Earns Its Place
The album is short — 36 minutes — and a few tracks in the middle feel like they are reaching for something they do not quite grab. But the best material here is as good as anything Paramore has ever made.
This is a mature record that does not confuse maturity with softness. This Is Why earned a Metacritic score of 85 out of 100. It earns its place.
- This Is Why3:27
- The News3:08
- Running Out of Time3:12
- C’est comme ça2:29
- Big Man, Little Dignity4:20
- You First4:05
- Figure 83:25
- Liar4:22
- Crave3:55
- Thick Skull3:53
