On that faithful evening when I made my way up the hill of Stadium Negara, where Paramore was schedule to rock it out in just a few more hours, I could feel butterflies all about in my stomach. I had no idea what it was going to be like as it was my first Paramore concert and I was excited as ever to finally hear the band live.
My friends and I, scurried as much as we could as to not miss a single bit of the experience. Every fiber of my being was being challenged to stay together in one piece whenever I thought of the fact that I was actually going to be in the presence of PARAMORE and breathe the same air.
As we walked up the hill, all we could see was just multitudes of people that seemed to be endless. All the people in their Paramore shirts and with the songs that were being played by the TuneTalk booth made it impossible for people not to be enthusiastic.
We waited and waited for the gates to open, everybody was growing impatient. If there was a concert, they wanted it No-o-o-o-o-o-o-ow! Eventually, they got what they wished for, the gates opened up slowly and people were allowed to go into the Stadium and with every step we took, the closer we got to it being a reality and further away it would get from it being just a dream.
Wanting to get good spots, my friends and I hurried to the front where we not more than 50m away from the stage. It was a good spot, we could see everything.
The concert started, “Me Without You” came out and did their thing. They were amazingly enthusiastic at what they did, causing us to feel as if they were on some kind of weird “substance” that would cause them to have such extreme actions. And I think everybody that was there would agree that they did put on a good show! Their songs nonetheless made us feel as if we were in a different world altogether.
I think none of us expected to see Hayley during the “Me Without You” performance, but she made an appearance in one of their songs and all of us were happily surprised by this. Chants of “Hayley” could be heard all across the stadium as she made her way out onto the stage to sing with “Me Without You”. She looked stunning, as always, in her bright red hair and baby bangs, wearing a top that revealed that beautiful flower tattoo on her left hip. I was star-struck. No other way to describe.
As the concert went on, it was due time that Paramore would come on stage. Everybody was restless, we didn’t want to wait anymore, even the microphone dude was getting some love from the audience, to the sound screw to the towel boy, and then all of a sudden (…)
The lights went off, people started chanting again, and Paramore made their glorious appearance on stage. – Paramore opened with their newest song “Now”. Everybody went crazy, they jumped, they sang, they head-banged, they stood in awe of them.
When the song ended, “That’s What You Get” started. It was followed by “Born for this” and “For a pessimist, I’m pretty optimistic”. Somewhere in between those songs, Hayley made their formal introduction with the trademark “WE ARE PARAMORE” speech.
Although people were still hyped in the ecstasy of their performances, Hayley wasn’t pleased with the fact that there were people who were sitting down at the back and she broke out in a plea and said that we were all beautiful, and that some of us at the back looked too comfortable sitting down, hence enforcing that if we didn’t start getting into the groove, the same sentiment about us being beautiful wouldn’t be given by the end of the concert. For those who were constantly jumping and singing, all we wanted was for them to start feeling this concert as well, and they did.
As each song was performed, more and more people were joining in the hype. It was such a joy to see. From “Decode”, “Renegade”(MY FAVOURITE SONG!), “Pressure”, “Careful” to the epic acoustic performance of “In The Mourning”. It was so beautiful, all I wanted was to get wholly drowned in Hayley’s angelic voice. There was no telling how many times Hayley told the crowd that we sang beautifully, but really, all I could think of was, “Hayley, just stop. You are too amazing!”
They carried on their performance with another love song, “The Only Exception” and all around, couples started to embrace their partners. The beautiful soft moment ended when they started to perform “Let The Flames Begin”, then continued with “Fences” and “Looking Up”.
The concert went on, and the people were still as hyped as ever. “Ignorance”, “Monster”, “Brick by Boring Brick” was performed and with every jump I took, people would squeeze in just to get that little bit closer to the band. No words could really explain how I really felt when I was there, it’s hard for me to even grasp how I felt, with so much of emotions stirring up inside of me, and I’m sure I wasn’t the only one there who felt this way.
The lights went on and we knew that this may just be the end of the show. We were all dissatisfied. Our Paramore thirst needed to be quenched and we wanted more!
So the band came out again, performing their encore songs of “Hello Cold World” and “Misery Business”, ending the night with a blast.
It was an experience to remember. It’s a whole new experience when you are actually there compared to when you sit behind a computer screen, envious of the others who are there. The next time they come, don’t hesitate to go, because I know I won’t. A big “Thank you” is due to everybody who made this concert happen and thank you, Paramore. I LOVE YOU!
– May
