Hard Times – Paramore

Haley Williams is one of the coolest frontwomen of all time, bringing an awesome energy and great vocals to all their songs. Traditionally, I think Paramore is considered a rock band, but like many rock acts of the 2000s (Fall Out Boy comes to mind), their sound has evolved over time, with this song, “Hard Times,” in particular being quite a far cry from their earliest and biggest hit, “Misery Business.” That isn’t a slight of saying one is better than the other, just a comment on the band’s evolution of sound.

In “Hard Times” I most definitely hear influence from the Talking Heads, so much so that David Byrne actually collaborated with Paramore for a great cover that I would say takes the song from influence to in the style of. It’s too damn good if you’re a fan of the Talking Heads. Musically, I love the bass line, maybe the highlight of the song for me. The guitar is extra 80’s disco funky and makes you just wanna groove. The song has great lyrics with simple but strong lyrics, delivered with perfect enthusiasm by Haley.

Audio – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEB6ibtdPZc

Live – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uVqvPJgGig

David Byrne – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG72N2leG7s