There's nothing quite like the convenience of going to a big-ticket concert at an arena within walking distance of your school. UVA students are lucky to be blessed with John Paul Jones Arena, which over the years has hosted big-name artists like Elton John, Carrie Underwood, Stevie Wonder, and others. So when I heard last summer that Panic! At The Disco was coming to JPJ the following January, I wasn't surprised, but it didn't initially stick out as something I would attend. At the time, I knew exactly five songs by P!ATD, which certainly wouldn't qualify me as a fan.

However, given the convenience of going to big concerts at JPJ, and given that I have a lot of friends who absolutely love Panic! At The Disco, I figured that it might be worth looking into tickets for a concert that would definitely be fun, even if it wasn't for one of my favorite bands. And as you might expect from the title of this article, I am so glad that I did.

As soon as I walked into JPJ last Wednesday, a faint smell of emo middle school pride in the air, I could sense that the crowd at this concert would be VERY into it. Things looked up even more when my friends and I were miraculously upgraded from our $38.75 nosebleed tickets to FLOOR SEATS. Seats where I could feel every vibration from the bass running through my body, and seats with a wonderfully unobstructed view of Brendon Urie in all his glory. And this was all before the concert really got going.

I've been to a fair amount of concerts in my life, but Panic! At The Disco definitely put on one of the most fun concerts, with the highest production value, of any show that I've seen. From the moment that streamers flooded the arena as the first song got underway, to Brendon Urie singing and playing piano suspended on a platform at least 10 feet above the crowd, to the jubilant screams that filled JPJ whenever P!ATD launched into one of their biggest hits, I was completely engrossed in the performance. Everyone there seemed to be having the time of their lives with every song, whether it was a newer song like "High Hopes" or an older song like "Nine in the Afternoon." It felt like one big party for the entire 2 hours that the band was on stage.

And that doesn't even begin to do justice to the incredible perfection that is Brendon Urie's voice, especially his higher range. I was obviously aware before this concert that he is a fantastic singer with an unbelievable range, but I did NOT expect him to hit notes soaring into the stratosphere on basically every song the band performed. My jaw dropped probably at least once per song. It also stayed dropped during the entire duration of "Bohemian Rhapsody."

Yes, you read that right. Amidst the infectious pop-rock songs that comprised most of the setlist, perhaps the standout moment of the evening was when Brendon paid tribute to Queen and Freddie Mercury by performing one of the most iconic songs of all time. And he absolutely nailed it. While the crowd (including me) confidently belted out every word of this classic tune, Brendon effortlessly did the song justice and performed the song with a flair that only Freddie himself (and maybe Adam Lambert) could match. I never thought I'd get a chance to hear this incredible song performed live, but as soon as it was over I wished that I could be in that moment over and over again.

I generally avoid Snapchatting or filming during concerts, but during the 24 hours that followed the concert, I was obsessively watching and re-watching all of the snap stories from my friends that also attended the concert. This concert had everything I could have possibly wanted from a big concert: fantastic lighting, an actual horn section and string quartet onstage, no major lulls between songs, incredible showmanship, and music that instantly gets the entire audience on its feet. I hope that P!ATD considers JPJ as a worthy stop on their next concert tour since clearly, they have the entire UVA population in the palm of their hand. I am sorry that I waited so long to listen to Panic! At The Disco and see them in concert, but as soon as this show ended I wanted to experience it all over again.