This past weekend, the University of North Alabama's UPC brought Panic! at the Disco to Flower's Hall for an electric and fun night.
The day started out like a typical Saturday. I stayed in bed longer than normal and took my time getting up. I knew that I was going to have a very long day ahead of me with a concert later that night.
The original plan was to wake up, eat breakfast, and take my time getting ready. I had planned on going with my friends to wait in whatever line had formed for the concert so that we could get a great spot. I woke up around 9 o’clock and set out to do my pre-planned tasks. I did a little homework, and it was after that my friend Paige received a text saying that a line had already formed.
It was not long till we were in line waiting. This was my first concert and I was determined that it was going to be one of the best experiences of my life. I wanted to be as close as I could to the stage as I possibly could.
The wait was not unbearable. We made friends with the people around us, and even played card games to pass the time. Eventually the line was forced to move into a more cohesive and organized line. During the wait, there were multiple rain showers, none of which we got caught in due to the generosity of my friends and a girl next to us who had given us a umbrella to use in addition to the one we already had.
When the doors finally opened, it wasn't long till I had secured a spot at the front of the crowd. We still had an hour before anyone took the stage, but it was an hour well worth it.
The opening act was Apollo LTD, who despite their microphones, sounded amazing. I felt bad that I was not able to fully appreciate their music because their microphones didn’t seem to be loud enough. They played a rather short set that lasted around 35 minutes. The last 25 minutes of the hour were spent waiting for Panic! At the Disco to take the stage.
Nine hours of waiting in total later, I was not disappointed.
As each member of the band took the stage, they were met with applause and screams, especially front man Brendon Urie.
For me, I was still in a state of disbelief. I was actually at the front of the crowd watching one of my favorite bands perform.
P!ATD opened with “Don’t Threaten Me With a Good Time” and immediately had the crowd enthralled. Everybody was singing and dancing along, and it was hard to actually hear Urie singing for a little while.
The set was mixed with songs from all their released albums, including their latest, Death of a Bachelor.
The song I was most excited to hear was “L.A. Devotee”, but my personal favorite song of the night was “Emperor’s New Clothes”. Urie is a vocal powerhouse and this song was just amazing to hear live. What I loved the most about his performance was the theatrics that he employed. He moved around the stage, and even played different instruments.
“I Write Sins, Not Tragedies” was played, much to the delight of everyone. Hearing this song sung live was a little surreal. I remember hearing this song during my middle school years and not liking it at first until I heard the rest of their music. After that, I was in love.
However, they also performed their own rendition of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” with Urie on the keyboard that took everybody by storm. For me, it brought back the countless memories of being in marching band and singing this song on the way back from games and competitions. I was one of many singing along.
The show was closed out by Victorious and was just as energetic and amazing as every song before it.
The musical performance aside, the setup of the lights during their performance was spot on and added so much energy to what they did. Everything was literally perfect. Even after having a day to process all of it, I still don’t think there was anything that could have made this show better, except if they had stayed longer and performed more songs.
By the end of the show, I was in awe of the music spectacular that I had witnessed. If you ever have the chance to watch this magnificent band perform live, do it. You will not regret it.
