Paramore has been around for 2 decades at this point (which is hard to believe). And they’ve been through a massive evolution in that time. In this ranking we’ll decide once and for all where these iconic albums place, from worst to best!
Here’s how I’ve got the Paramore albums ranked:
6. All We Know is Falling (2005)
5. This is Why (2023)
4. Riot! (2007)
3. Brand New Eyes (2009)
2. After Laughter (2017)
1. Paramore (2013)
6. All We Know is Falling (2005)
Best Songs: Emergency, Pressure
Worst Song: N/A
While Paramore’s All We Know is Falling album has some undeniable classics, and a raw, unpolished charm, it’s clear that this was just a preview of the greatness to come. I’m sure everyone can remember rocking along to Pressure in Rock Band 4, and all the trappings of fantastic Paramore songs are here. There are iconic and memorable hooks, delectable guitar noodles, and more.
However, there are some elements that aren’t to the heights of future albums. For example, the drumming from Zac Farro might be the secret hero of the entire band, and in this album it doesn’t stand out quite as much as follow-ups. The production, while unpolished and raw, leaves a bit to be desired. The flatness of the guitar sound keeps songs that may have come off as heavy tracks in a middling, slightly forgettable territory.
I know there is a strong love for this one from many of you. I totally get it, as there is charm in the unpolished nature of it. However, I do feel nostalgia is a core part of the love this album gets. So a solid debut, but not quite as good as their best.
5. This is Why (2023)
Best Songs: The News, This is Why
Worst Song: C’est Comme Ca
This might be the saddest one to rank for me, particularly because of the missed potential. I wouldn’t even come close to saying I dislike this album, but I just can’t quite get behind the universal acclaim.
The first 3 songs on this album are some of the best Paramore songs we’ve gotten. Period. This is Why has an undeniable pop rock flair that I feel confident I can show to anybody I know and they will enjoy it. And it does so without sacrificing the charm and complexity that makes Paramore special. The News is a cutting romp, with more energy and bite than anything we had on their preceding outing. And Running Out Of Time’s extreme strangeness and quirkiness works in its favor to make it undeniable and requires repeat listens to dig deep into the sonic complexities.
Unfortunately, we then have a mix of songs that range from okay to good. C’est Comme Ca is…perhaps my least favorite Paramore song, too. Thankfully, Thick Skull and Figure 8 carry the second half of a solid album, but there are too many Paramore albums where I pretty much love every song for this album to sit anywhere higher than 5. While I have heard universal acclaim for the production as well, I think it leaves a bit to be desired.( In the stronger, biting songs like The News, I can’t help but imagine that a brutally aggressive and raw live version would hit much harder.
With all of this negative talk, I think it’s important to say I still really like this album. It has some of my favorite Paramore songs, and its unquestionably the most musically intricate and complex they’ve ever been. And I appreciate everything the band was able to deliver on this project on some level.
4. Riot! (2007)
Best Songs: Misery Business, Let the Flames Begin, Fences
Worst Song: Miracle
Paramore took the raw talent and rocking power of their debut and leveled it up in every single way on their follow up. A lot of people, partially due to nostalgia and partially due to the power of Riot!, see this as the best paramore album. Of course, it birthed the iconic Misery Business, crushcrushcrush, and That’s What You Get. Even just the Riot Paramore album art is considered their best! There’s nowhere you can turn and not see praise for this album.
When I recently saw the band live, those songs are still the ones that got the audience hyped and jumping off the ground more than any others. There’s something to be said about the staying power of tracks that, even 18 years later, are able to literally raise people out of their seats.
Beyond that, the deeper cuts manage to almost universally be bangers, and provide interesting musical variety. From the dancing bass of Fences to the ominous atmosphere of Let the Flames Begin, there’s no shortage of reasons to return to Riot!. I’m sure there are plenty of you who are upset I didn’t place it in first, but there are simply other Paramore albums I enjoy just a bit more, and a couple of the tracks that don’t stand out as much leave this album not quite as a complete experience.
3. Brand New Eyes (2009)
Best Songs: Misguided Ghosts, Playing God, Ignorance
Worst Songs: NA
I couldn’t select a worst song. And this is number 3. Wow.
While Riot! was full of classics, particularly high energy singles that could just rock the roof off of a venue, I think some of their slower moments left me wanting just a little bit more. That was until the release of Brand New Eyes, which features the best collection of ballads and slower tracks in the bands history. From the absolutely haunting and magnetic Misguided Ghosts, to the beautiful and loving The Only Exception, song after song on this album reminds me why I fell in love with the band. I could have listed half the album in the “Best Songs” section, but I begrudgingly cut it to sit with only a top 3.
And just outside of that is All I Wanted, a crushing and brutal closer featuring Hayleys best vocals to date. And then Brick by Boring Brick, a track designed to hit the roof ejecting highs of Riot!. Everywhere you turn in this album is classics. And while placing it at 3 is hard, I just prefer the top 2 slightly more.
I will say, though, while I do enjoy the stretch of Feeling Sorry, Looking Up, and Where the Lines Overlap, that isn’t the best stretch of the album. It doesn’t hit the highs of the rest of the album, which is probably what keeps this one just out of the top 2.
Also, this one is my favorite Paramore album artwork. The symbolic butterfly and melancholic look is just perfect.
2. After Laughter (2017)
Best Songs: Hard Times, Rose-Colored Boy, Idle Worship
Worst Songs: Tell Me How
This is the album that made me re-fall in love with Paramore. From the moment the single dropped, I had a morbid curiosity. I’m not even sure why I was so intrigued. Perhaps it was becuase I hadn’t regularly listened to the band in so long, and I just wanted to see what they were up to. Maybe it was the odd aesthetic of vintage vibrancy that jumped right off the screen and into my dopamine centers.
However, what I was greeted with on the drop of Hard Times was a new obsession. Paramore instantly became one of my favorite bands, as I became addicted to the quirky and offbeat pop infectiousness. Even the music video alone was enough to get me hooked with its iconic visual presentation. I still go back to it from time to time
And each release after was nearly just as good. Rose-Colored boys sickening optimism and girlish chanting somehow broke through my withered soul and got me jumping and smiling along. And, while the trend of “music that sounds happy but is really sad” has been beat into the ground at this point, it really feels that this album itself was the catalyst to the trend, signalling that Paramore wasn’t just a relic of the past, but a band that could still set the trends of the future.
Even the slower moments here, that don’t fully align with the glamourous, highly produced sensibilities of the rest of the album, are really intricate and well done. Forgiveness is a really nice ballad, but 26 steals the show with the delicate and hypnotic guitar presence of Misguided Ghosts with an all-time vocal performance and beautiful strings. Sure, the last 2 tracks aren’t the strongest the band has put together, but every single song before that is so solid that this might just be their most complete and cohesive album yet. It’s hard to understate how much of an impact this album may have had on the entire music ecosystem, and for good reason.
1. Paramore (2013)
Best Songs: Last Hope, Still Into You
Worst Songs: Now
Paramore’s self-titled album is, to me, the quintessential Paramore album. It includes sparkles and shades of every single era, even those to come, with the best production, the best variety, the longest and juiciest length, and the best songs.
Still Into You provides hints at the After Laughter era that was soon to come, with their best pop song to date. Last hope features their most emotional lyrics that I can’t help but relate to so strongly that I’ve considered tattooing them permanently on my body. Anklebiters and Part 2 bring back the heaviness in a huge way. Ain’t It Fun features their best bass line of their career, with one of Hayleys best vocal performances (again). And, even the middling tracks that came off as filler in lower-tier albums pack a huge and memorable punch, like Proof.
There are so many fantastic songs here that it’s impossible to not get lost in the track list and forget another song that is fantastic. Hate to See Your Heart Break is one of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard, and I don’t know if I’ve ever heard someone mention it in my entire life. But that’s the beauty of this album. There’s so much of it, and it’s simply, too good.
Nightwalk 
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