It’s pretty easy to assume that most people left Panic! At The Disco in middle school, but it seems that Brendon Urie has come to change our minds about that.
“Death of a Bachelor” has been released by the notoriously emo band Panic! At The Disco on January 15, making this their fifth album.
Many have been skeptical of how successful this album would be, considering only frontman Brendon Urie is left from the original band. Also, album sales usually go down the more bands produce them because of streaming services like Spotify and the new Apple Music.
However, this was not the truth for Panic! -- their release-week sales were higher than they have ever been. They even passed Adele’s “25” album and Justin Bieber’s “Purpose” album which sold 5.8 million copies and one million copies respectively, according to Billboard.
With the variety on this album, Brendon Urie deserves the #1 spot. The album is all over the place from traces of the old punk sounds of 2005 Panic! At The Disco in “Victorious,” to the croony jazz sounds of “Death Of A Bachelor.” Somehow, it all works.
There are a few duds on the album, like “Impossible Year” (that’s right-- I said it), but this album is a huge success for Panic!.
These are just a few of the tracks that make the album worth buying.
“Victorious” has an edgy sound, especially in the verses and the strange metaphors. You can hear the old Panic! At The Disco in “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out.” The song differs from many of the songs because of the addition of more electronic sound.
“Hallelujah” is not the Hallelujah you’d expect. It’s all about sinning, being in love, having strong sexual desires, and an overlying theme of being reckless and young. This is the song in which Brendon Urie’s voice is most defined, with an orchestra in the background to compliment him.
What’s strange about this song is that parts of it sound like it could have been recorded by Gavin DeGraw, whose music is completely different from Panic! At The Disco’s.
“Emperor’s New Clothes” is about taking back what was once yours. It has a spooky sound to it and reminds you of “I Write Sins Not Tragedies” in the verses. The background voices in the hooks of the song also sound like they belong in the Haunted Mansion ride in Disneyland.
As the title track of the album, “Death Of A Bachelor” is all it’s choked up to be and more. Urie flawlessly combines his crooning voice with a newer sound. The beat of the song gives it an R&B vibe, but the trumpets in background have a Sinatra-esque element.
There are also weird electronic elements at the end, which if tried by anyone else may ruin the song, but Panic!’s balance of creative energy keeps the song at bay.
“LA Devotee” is definitely the most pop sounding song on the album.
The orchestra compliments Urie’s voice like it does in “Hallelujah.” Urie describes a woman he fell in love with who was so caught up in the L.A. lifestyle that he couldn’t or wouldn’t want to change her.
This song displays great writing and the description of this L.A. girl is incomparable. This is where Urie’s artistry comes out.
“Golden Days” is superb, and the first half of the chorus is the closest we get to an acoustic. This song is about reminiscing on the past and wondering about the future. It is the most underrated song on the album, mainly because it shows great range in Urie’s voice.
Brendon Urie has proven that the golden days are not yet over for Panic! At The Disco and makes us hope they never will be. The album provokes many different emotions and plays with a lot of different sounds. It’s outside the box, but it’s brilliant. I definitely suggest that you go purchase the album from iTunes, and if not, give it a listen on Spotify.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
