Hard Times

The lead single from After Laughter was not only Paramore's first new music since 2013's self-titled release, but also marked their first recording with original drummer Zac Farro in nearly seven years.

The song's lyrical content describes the "deep depression" that hang over lead singer Hayley Williams during the writing and recording process for After Laughter, stemming from relationship issues both personal and professional. This related in part to bassist Jeremy Davis leaving the band in December 2015 and his ensuing legal battle with Paramore over his eligibility to enjoy the benefits of a business partnership with Williams as a co-owner of the band. All that I want is a hole in the ground You can tell me when it's all right for me to come out "You can run on the fumes of being a teenager for as long as you want, but eventually life hits you really hard," Williams told The New York Times regarding the tumultuous period since Paramore last released an album. "I didn't even know if we were going to make another record. There was a moment when I didn't even want it to happen. Then it was like, I want it to happen, but I don't know how we're going to do it."

The '80s-influenced candy-colored video was directed by Andrew Joffe alongside his cousin Matt. It features Hayley Williams singing and dancing on a set decorated with trees and tiny thunderclouds, and slipping in and out of a colorful hand-drawn world. "Paramore are super-creative people, and they had it in their mind in the brief they gave us that they wanted to embody some kind of '80s vibe, but not do a total throwback video," Andrew Joffe told Billboard magazine "They sent us a bunch of good references - INXS videos, definitely A-Ha's 'Take On Me' and Peter Gabriel's 'Sledgehammer.' So we looked to the greats and said, 'How do we do something like this and not riff too hard?'"