Don’t purchase Paramore’s new self-titled album thinking you’re going to hear the same band you’ve been listening to since high school. You’re getting something even better.

Though they now lack band initiates Zac and Josh Farro, Paramore packs a punch in every track. They might be better off without the Farro brothers.

The jam-packed April 9 release features 17 tracks. It’s obvious they’ve been busy in their four-year hiatus since brand new eyes.

The album opens with booming percussion in “Fast In My Car.” A pink-haired Hayley Williams sings, “No one’s the same as they used to be, much as they try to pretend.”

As a whole, the album features a theme centered on the brothers’ departure.

“Now,” a track full of harder guitar riffs by Taylor York than Paramore’s normal style, features a chorus of, “If there’s a future, we want it now-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow.” And the next track, “Grow Up,” carries the theme aimed toward the Farros. “Some of us have to grow up sometimes / and so if I have to I’m gonna leave you behind,” Williams sings.

Three “Interludes” feature solely Williams and a ukulele and rounds out her feelings toward the partial break up of the band.

For fans of Paramore’s Riot!, “Part II” is the track for you. Using lyrics from “Let The Flames Begin,” the threesome provides a new spin on the old track. It’s beautiful in its simplicity. York, with Jeremy Davis on bass, take a nearly 2-minute-long instrumental break before Williams’s vocals cut in to end the song.

“Still Into You” adds more of the fun, Paramore flare, and “Last Hope,” the most impressive track on the album –– in my opinion –– combines deep lyrics with stunning, light instrumentals. “It’s just a spark, but it’s enough to keep me going,” Williams sings.

Look into the whole album for beautiful, relatable lyrics. You definitely won’t be disappointed.

(5/5)