Re: This Is Why by Paramore // 2024 Record Store Day Exclusive Ruby Red Vinyl

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Happy Record Store Day! This year's ambassadors for the semi-annual event is one of my favorites, Paramore! To celebrate the occasion, they released a few special vinyl variants, including Re: This Is Why pressed on vinyl for the first time. This is an indie record store exclusive released in April 2024 for Record Store Day, which is an event held twice a year to celebrate independent record stores with dozens of new and exclusive music releases special for the occasion. Paramore is newly independent themselves, so this is a great time for them to be the face of the semi-annual celebration of independent record stores! 

In a press release Paramore said, "...The discovery of music was always meant to be romantic. Indie record shops are some of the only spaces we’ve got that offer a tangible, tactile experience of music discovery. In this world that feels more disconnected and hostile than ever, it feels important to remain in touch (literally) with what inspires us, empowers us, or simply brings us joy. Thankfully, for all our sakes, there still survives among the chaos, the purity and radical simplicity of a great record store." 

This is one of the records I was most looking forward to this year and am so happy I was able to get a copy today! It is the reimagined version of their 2023 album, This Is Why, which was one of my top favorites released last year. It is limited to 15,000 copies and pressed on a beautiful transparent ruby red vinyl. It features all eleven tracks from the original This Is Why album, plus a bonus previously unreleased demo. They called it "almost a remix album", with all twelve songs being reimagined, reworked, and partially rewritten by other artists that they cited as influences, or have cited them as influences as well. This track list is so varied and creates such a unique listening experience for those that are fans of the original version. 

I love how each artist really made these songs all their own and the way they all sound completely different from the original Paramore version. Wet Leg's version of "C'est Comme Ã‡a" is an immediate standout for me, that song suits them so well and highlights all of their best talents as a band. They shine the most with this sort of satirical style of performance that this song really embodies.

Other great artists featured throughout include; Remi Wolf, Zane Lowe, Claud, Bartees Strange, among others. I absolutely love Hayley Williams' duet with Romy on "Liar", it is such a beautifully heart-wrenching rendition of the original. Tthe added verses and their vocal harmonies are stunning too. 

Another stand-out is Jack Antonoff's reimagination of "Sanity", which is one of the more recent additions to the album after its initial digital release. The original demo was released on the digital version only, but I love that this new version made it onto the physical release. The production of it makes the song feel so much darker and more haunting than the demo version. Hayley's vocals sound incredible too, she is such a powerhouse vocalist. The addition of the extra instrumentals and backing vocals elevates this song to new heights. "Sanity" has a really cool and unconventional style, I would love to hear Paramore go into this direction more with future releases. 

My absolute favorite song on this album is Julien Baker's take on "Thick Skull". Her vocal approach to this song is similar to the original, but also feels even heavier than the original in some parts. The guitar solos are insane on this version, I absolutely love it and play it on repeat over and over all the time. "Thick Skull" is the closing track for the standard album and I always loved the way it brought this record to a close. 

They had two versions of this vinyl available; one is a 2LP featuring both the standard vinyl and the remixes, and another featuring just the remixes. I already have a really nice gold copy of the standard album, so I opted for the single disc, but I love that they had the option available for either!

The art direction of this release is also so well done. The image on the cover is so captivating. It is a recreation of Marlene Dumas' painting "Teeth", which is an artist they referenced on their original album cover, as well. The typography on the back cover and the inner sleeve/liner notes is also so well done too. 

I also bought a special T-shirt that says "Paramore Is A Band!" on it - which is a reference to a late 1970's Blondie merch design that says "Blondie Is A Group!" on it. I love the vintage inspired design! I was so happy to see my record store had these in stock and knew I had to have it! It was supposed to be a bundle with a special poster, but unfortunately the distributor didn't send it to the record store in time. They also gave out Paramore pins when purchasing the vinyl and T-shirt, which is such a cute little extra! 

Check out my full review of This Is Why by Paramore! 


If you're interested in reading more about this album, check out my full review of This Is Why by Paramore and more of my favorite albums of 2023. My dad and I had such a fun time today at Record Store Day! It is a day we look forward to every year and we were able to get lots of great new records! I wrote about the other two vinyl I got at RSD this year, if you'd like to see some more recent additions to my collection - check it out here and more linked below!

Thanks for reading! I would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below! Be sure to support your local record stores!


All photos are my own!







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