Daiana Feuer on September 28th, 2017

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Paramore hit the stage running Tuesday night at the Greek Theater, kicking off with “Hard Times,” a single from the “After Laughter” album released earlier this year. Singer Hayley Williams could hardly stay still during the dance tracks, tossing her hair around, doing high kicks and jumping in the air.

Williams was very excited to play the Greek and took time to share some personal feelings with the audience. The audience raised their cellphones in the air like cigarette lighters for “Hate to See Your Heart Break” after she introduced the song like this: “If you’ve hung out with our band for any length of time, you know that we tend to write an angst-y song or two. We’ve been playing music together since we were 12 and 13, so what do you expect? I don’t really know what we were so angry about, but something wasn’t right. As we’ve gotten older, it’s, um … first of all it’s amazing that we’re even still a band. Very fun. Very cool. But hopefully as we get older and we continue to try and learn to write songs everyday, we can write about things that make us feel vulnerable and maybe express those emotions in ways that might have been embarrassing before, or maybe we just didn’t try. And right now … it seems like it might be pretty important to try and connect and not use anger to express ourselves? … And it’s places like this where we can gather and celebrate music and celebrate the fact that we’ve survived thus far. And you’ve given us a safe place to express things that we feel. This is a song about empathy, which I think we could use a little more of.”

Original drummer Zack Farro rejoined the band this year, after quitting with his brother back in 2010. He had a moment in the spotlight during the set, performing “Scooby’s In The Back” from his solo band HalfNoise. In a way of acknowledging the drama that’s trailed the band during its existence, Williams said, “I know that Paramore has been a little bit of a soap opera to follow for like 15 years. And you’re welcome. It’s very entertaining. We’ve always tried to express in the best ways that we know how that Paramore’s not really about who’s in the pictures, who’s in the articles, or what color my hair is. It is about what happening right here on the stage and right there out there.”

Williams got personal before the band played “26,” offering encouragement to anyone losing hope about life: “I think had I known what 27 and 28 were gonna hold, I probably would have had a lot more hope. But 26 was just rough. And I say all that because wherever you’re at, whatever age, whatever number; when there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel it really feels like you can’t be convinced that there actually is in fact light at the end of the tunnel. But if you just hang on for another birthday, or another number, another moment, you might find hope again. It just takes a second. So you know, this is a sad song but it’s pretty incredible to have survived it and to be here and we get to play it for you now.”

Setlist: Hard Times, Ignorance, Still Into You, Daydreaming, Forgiveness, Brick by Boring Brick, Playing God, That’s What You Get, I Caught Myself, Hate to See Your Heart Break, 26, Told You So, Everywhere (Fleetwood Mac cover), Fake Happy, Misery Business, Ain’t It Fun. Encore: Caught in the Middle, Scooby’s in the Back (HalfNoise), Rose-Colored Boy.

Photos by Maximilian Ho