Released: 2009
If you’re looking for a heart-wrenching rock anthem, look no further than “Brick by Boring Brick” by Paramore. This song, my friends, is an emotive ride, a gritty admonition against losing oneself in illusions and fairy tales instead of living feet-on-ground reality. It’s a visceral critique of escapism and the allure of living in an imagined dream world as opposed to embracing the harsh realities of life.
Right from the bats, “Well, she lives in a fairy tale / Somewhere too far for us to find”, Hayley Williams, the band’s iron lungs, sets the stage describing a girl who’s lost in her own fantastical imagination as a way to escape from reality. The line “It’s all about the exposure, the lens”, I told her”, highlights the importance of perspective, crucially reminding us that realities can be distorted, twisted, all depending on the lens through which it’s viewed.
The chorus, with its directive to “go get your shovel / And we’ll dig a deep hole / To bury the castle”, is a call to action — a plea to tear down these imaginary constructs and face the not-so-pretty facts of life. The castle signifies the grandeur of our fantasies, which may often lead us astray from forging our own narrative with blood, sweat, and tears — or as the song puts it aptly, “brick by boring brick”.
Then we see a nod to the classic fairy tale with “Her prince finally came to save her… it was a trick and the clock struck 12”. It suggests that waiting for salvation or the perfect ‘happy ending’ is futile and could lead to heartbreak when the illusion shatters. The song urges us to make sure to build our homes, our lives perhaps, “brick by-by boring brick”, suggesting the importance of stability, hard work, and a dash of mundane reality over fanciful dreams.
The bridge takes a sharp turn with “Well, you built up a world of magic / Because your real life is tragic”. That, comrades, is the crux of it all. It’s an accusation and a sympathetic understanding of the drive to escape reality by embellishing it with grandiose fantasies.
Finally, the song offers a sobering wisdom, “if it’s not real / You can’t hold it in your hand / You can’t feel it with your heart”. It jeers at the superficiality of illusionary worlds and advocates for the tangible, the real, the heartfelt– however raw and painful it may be.
Taken as a whole, “Brick by Boring Brick” is a potent song, a charge against fantastical escapism, and a rallying cry for embracing grim reality and constructing our destiny with our hands. Rock on, Paramore.
