All posts in: Josh Farro

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22 Dec 2010

Ex-Paramore Bandmates Bite Back

Josh and Zac Farro have now posted a statement to clarify the announcement that Hayley and the remaining members we don’t care so much about made this past weekend about the departure.

Well, we all knew that it would come to this. I adore Hayley – as much as I can adore someone without meeting them first, but there was something about that original statement that signaled to me that this wasn’t going to end well for the band.

Oh yeah…it was this:

A couple of months ago, Josh and Zac let us know they would be leaving the band after our show in Orlando last Sunday. None of us were really shocked. For the last year it hasn’t seemed as if they wanted to be around anymore.

Paramore, you’ve had a great run. You’ve put out three very successful albums, but where are you headed? Is this really what you want to be doing Hayley? If going solo has been your intention all along (basically stated from what Josh and Zac had to say) then why not do it already? The references to the bible in the guys’ statement is a little much, but kudos to them for having a voice in all of this!

To read Josh and Zac’s statement click here. For the original Paramore statement, click here.

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19 Dec 2010

Paramore Loses Two Original Members

Today, Paramore announced that Josh and Zac Farro would be leaving the band. Both members have been a part of Paramore since they had formed six years ago.

One thing that my work advisor and I had in common was our love for Paramore. I loved their music. He loved Hayley Williams – disregard the age factor. When you have favorite bands, you hope that they never break up, but hopes and reality are two completely different things. Plenty of my favorite bands have broken up: Gatsby’s American Dream, Copeland, Acceptance, Forgive Durden. “Why does this happen? If bands are doing successful and producing great music then what could be the problem?” asked teenager me.

“When bands first form, it is because they love the music. They love what they do. Success is great, but if you factor in touring, management, and earnings, it becomes a business. Bandmates are no longer friends, but rather they are co-workers. They don’t hang out for fun anymore because when they do it is for work. When they have time off, they’d rather spend it with other people outside of the band since they get enough of each other on the tour bus.”

When rumors swirled last year that Paramore was breaking up, I instantly thought back to this conversation that I had had long ago. When Paramore was established, the members were friends. They were not brought together by a record label as strangers. In fact, they tried to stay away from that. They wanted control over their music and they wrote their own songs. While I have enjoyed their second and third album, their best was their first “All We Know Is Falling.” If you’ve been paying attention to the band, you would notice that their first album is significantly different from the rest. It was raw and edgy. There is no doubt that this business has changed the band for both the better and the worse. They’ve been nominated and won several awards. They’ve made it to the Top 40 and “The Only Exception” was used in an episode of Glee. Unfortunately, it was some of these rewards that caused sacrifices to be made. Growth within a band is inevitable. I do wish small and local bands great success, but not at the cost of their relationships with each other.

Paramore will go on. The members will be replaced, but they may never be what they once were when they started.

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