Hayley Williams is opening up about Paramore’s forthcoming new album, describing how their “number one reference” is Bloc Party. On her BBC Sounds podcast Everything Is Emo, the Paramore singer talked about how the UK dance-punk group’s “urgency” acted as a driving force when her band started discussing making music together again.

“We loved this band, me and all my friends,” Williams said. “We were really into [Silent Alarm], and it always reminds me of getting my driving license. I paid my mom money that I got from a publishing advance we got from our first album to buy out the remainder of the car notes that she had for this old Mazda 626. I think I paid $3000, I named her Miss Anne, I covered her in stickers. Bloc Party’s Silent Alarm was always on in the car. It was a favorite, and there’s really not a bad track on it.”

Later in the episode, Williams spoke about how Paramore have been writing new music over the last 18 months and Bloc Party has been a major influence: “From day one, Bloc Party was the number one reference because there was such an urgency to their sound that was different to the fast punk or the pop punk or the like, loud wall of sound emo bands that were happening in the early 2000s,” she said.

Williams added: “They had their own thing and it was so unique and so dynamic, and it really stuck with us. And I’m really really thankful for this band, I’m so thankful that they’re back, they’re playing shows they’re putting out great songs, and it just makes me feel even more excited to get back out into the world, and maybe cross paths with the band that has been a huge part of our story from day one.”

Paramore’s last album was 2017’s After Laughter. They’ve recently been teasing new material, confirming how they’re back in the studio and announcing US tour dates. Listen to the latest episode of Everything Is Emo here.