Concert Review: Paramore, Lights, Hellogoodbye @ Air Canada Centre

By: Mehek Seyid (@whatthemehek) –

Pop-rock royalty Paramore brought their glitzy “Self-Titled Tour” last night to Toronto, performing a set packed with both new songs from their latest album, Paramore, and plenty of their old hits for around an hour and a half at the Air Canada Centre.

It was a show that had something to please everyone in the audience, which consisted of a mix of people well into their 20s and a fair share of younger fans, some of whom were even accompanied by a parent. It’s been eight years sinceParamore first debuted in 2005, a time where emo rock, Warped Tour and scene kids were at the height of their popularity. Much of Paramore’s core fan base has grown up with the band, but Paramore’s foray into the mainstream, mainly facilitated by their appearance on the Twilight soundtrack, has helped them garner a new wave of tween and teen fans. This probably explained the lukewarm reaction when the Franklin, Tennessee-natives opened their show with “Grow Up” and “Fast in My Car”, songs from their new album, which marks a departure from their more alternative-rock style. Although the younger fans was clearly more engaged with the new material, it was nice to see them join older audience members explode with excitement when Paramore performed older hits like “That’s What You Get” and “Brick by Boring Bring”, proving that their aggressive songs fare better in an arena setting.

It’s a tricky physical space to navigate for a band that has become too big for even the largest of club venues, but is still just a tad too small to actually fill up an arena, even when it’s set up in a half-bowl theatre style. It’s not that they lacked any tools to handle such a space. They had three slender bar screens hanging above them that displayed changing graphics, rotating strobes and spotlights, a light fixture that resembled a pile of brightly coloured hay straws, and endless stage presence which allowed them to reach out to even the farthest of audience members. The problem is that arenas like the Air Canada Centre have inherent limitations, including a half-filled, fairly regulated general admission area and seats in the stands that physically restrict audience members’ ability to jump around and mosh, like one would expect to do at a Paramore show. At one point, lead singer Hayley Williams acknowledged these barriers and encouraged her fans to really dance away during “Crushcrushcrush”, but unfortunately attendees in the seated areas were not able to fulfill the request.

It was only during the quieter moments of the show, such as “In The Mourning”, “Last Hope” and “The Only Exception” that this set-up worked well, as a string of cell phone lights began to appear, gentle swaying accompanying the soft rock ballads, creating uniformity in the crowd. Perhaps this can be attributed to Paramore’s ability to switch between being hard, no holds bar rockers to sweet serenaders in an instant. This range is especially exhibited by Williams, who easily manipulated her vocals to be vulnerable and controlled one minute and infectious and boisterous in the next, as seen during performances of “When It Rains”, “Decode” and “Pressure”. It’s the kind of skill that requires an immense amount of confidence because audience members look towards the lead singer to set the tone for certain moments. This was especially true during “Misery Business” where she brough a fan up on stage to sing the infamous bridge “Just watch my wildest dreams come true/ Not one of them involving”. At one point Williams stood aside, ecstatic at the fan’s performance as she jumped from a box, danced around with guitarists Taylor York and Jeremy Davis, and shoved the mic back into the audience so she could hear others join in on the chorus, mimicking Williams’ attitude as a fearless leader, making it one of the biggest moments of the night.

Williams’ revered stage persona is the result of Paramore’s tumultuous journey over the years. The band has gone through several lineup changes, a series of events that Williams called a “soap opera” at one point during the show. Throughout all the drama, Williams managed to grow into the kick-ass, admirable face of Paramore, and one that has embraced change in so many different ways.  This was a driving point throughout the show, including a particular point where “Ignorance” was followed by a ukulele-laden performance of “I’m Not Angry Anymore” and the constantly spoken phrase, “We. Are. PARAMORE!” Judging by the reaction to the band’s encore of “Part II” and “Still Into You”, it seemed that fans, old and new, are more than glad to stick around.

California-based Hellogoodbye and Canadian darling Lights opened for Paramore. Unfortunately for Hellogoodbye, a very small portion of the crowd enjoyed their quirky personas and indie-pop performance. Most of their set consisted of new songs from their newest release, Everything is Debatable, but the highlight was their nostalgia-inducing rendition of their 2010 hit, “Here In Your Arms”, a real treat for early birds despite the oddity of hearing lead singer Forrest Kline’s vocals overcome with autotune in a live setting.

A very adorably pregnant Lights performed at the Air Canada Centre for the first time to a much larger audience thanHellogoodbye. Her forty-five minute set mainly consisted of songs from her sophomore album Siberia, which included a lovely sing-along to her hit “Toes” and a well-received performance of “Last Thing On Your Mind”. She created a quieter, intimate moment when she threw it back to her first hit, “Drive My Soul”, but otherwise focused on using her brand of synth-pop to keep the momentum going. She closed what she said was her last performance before the baby arrives with “Banner”, an anthem whose electronic rhythms bounced around the Air Canada Centre and brought the audience to their feet, hands in the air, ready for Paramore.

Paramore Set-List

1. Grow Up
2. Fast in My Car
3. That’s What You Get
4. Decode
5. Ignorance
6. Interlude: I’m Not Angry Anymore
7. Now
8. Daydreaming
9. When It Rains
10. Last Hope
11. Brick by Boring Brick
12. Interlude: Holiday
13. Crushcrushcrush
14. Ain’t It Fun
15. The Only Exception
16. In the Mourning
17. Pressure
18. Misery BusinessEncore:

19. Part II
20. Interlude: Moving On
21. Still Into You