Hear a New Acoustic Version of ‘Simmer,’ from Hayley Williams’ Upcoming ‘Self-Serenades’ EP Out 12/18

Petals for Armor, the 2020 solo album from Hayley Williams, marked a stark departure from her time fronting Paramore. The album was a revelation, a powerful collection of eclectic material that marked Williams’s first proper solo record.

On Dec. 18, Williams will revisit a few of the album’s tracks for Self-Serenades, tender acoustic versions of “Simmer” and “Why We Ever,” plus a new track titled “Find Me Here.”

To preview the set, the new version of “Simmer” was shared on Wednesday:

the rest of SELF-SERENADES will be out Dec 18th
to pre-save or pre-order go here -> https://t.co/hdIjfLstFb (a super limited 10" is available too)

hope you enjoy🖤🌺 https://t.co/tFU9D1ykuP

— hayley from Paramore 🌺 (@yelyahwilliams) December 10, 2020

For comparison’s sake, here’s the original version of “Simmer,” one of the earliest tracks Williams shared from Petals for Armor:

Earlier this week, Hayley Williams and her band performed a NPR Tiny Desk (Home) Concert, featuring the songs “Pure Love,” “Taken” and “Dead Horse”:

If you haven’t yet listened to Petals for Armor, make sure to do so — it’s an eye-opening accomplishment from Hayley Williams.

At the heart of Petals for Armor is vulnerability. Pure, raw, messy vulnerability, the product of years of turmoil within Paramore and outside the band, as Williams dealt with a short-lived marriage to Chad Gilbert, guitarist of New Found Glory. The tumult led to a bout with deep depression, which Williams opened up about with Vulture:

I felt scared to talk about depression for a long time. When I wrote that, I hadn’t been diagnosed. I’m a smart enough person. I can think through what I’m going through even when I’m really down on myself. A lot of people with anxiety or depression are intellectual and can understand, but it’s bigger than that. It’s a chemical problem. I was realizing how out of my control it was. It mattered to talk about it. Getting that down in front of me was a turning point.