Many of us can remember when Panic! at the Disco exploded on the scene in 2005 with their debut album A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out. The album received mixed reviews, but I personally think it was a gem of an album. The album started out heavily synthesized with electronic beats then made a transition to instruments less used by rock bands, like accordions and organs. Stylistically, this made the album unique. The use of either one isn’t anything new, but the blend of the two made the group seem quirky and odd.
And then there was their second album, Pretty. Odd. The group took a big step in the wrong direction and changed their style from a strange baroque-pop band to folk-y acoustic ensemble. The album had a few great songs and several terrible ones. Overall, it was something of a failure, but it was well layered and showed a bit more maturity from the band. It was a good learning experience for them.
When the group sat down to start their third album, they went a few different ways. That was when they realized their creative differences. The band split, with singer-multi-instrumentalist Brendan Urie and drummer Spencer Smith carrying on the legacy.
All that said, Vices and Virtues shows real promise for the band. Their primary lyricist gone, the duo left the singer to try his hand at writing lyrics. Also, for this album, the band brought in a French children’s chorus in for one of the songs and used an Apple iPad as a synthesizer. While I’m not thrilled with their new choice of synth, it seemed to work out for the band. Mostly. The synthesized harmonies are full and musically great. Unfortunately, Panic! arguably used the synth a bit too much. The synthesized stringed choruses used in the album were put in the beginning or end of songs a bit disjointedly. A lot of the songs could easily have ended or started with a thirty second offset. If you plan to put songs from this album onto any playlists of yours, be prepared for the songs to either drag on or end on something odd and maybe unfitting.
But there is something very beautiful about this album: it recalls their first. Stripped of half their members, it is my belief that this is a sign that the band is finding their sound and style once again. The leftover musicians obviously liked A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out about as much as I did. So, while the songs are sometimes patchy and awkward, the album is a good sign. Should the band continue as they are, their next releases should be solid. That being said, this one shouldn’t be ignored. It has some really great songs on it, ones that are worthy of carrying on the legacy. “The Ballad of Mona Lisa”, “Let’s Kill Tonight”, “Trade Mistakes”, “Ready to Go (Get Me Out of My Mind)”, “Nearly Witches (Ever Since We Met…)” and “Sarah Smiles” are all great tracks. And the rest are worth a listen. “Hurricane” may take a while to grow on you, and some of their more mellow songs are a bit unlike the rest of the album, but good. The album is a short one, and it couldn’t hurt to take a listen.
Track listing:
“The Ballad of Mona Lisa” – 3:47
“Let’s Kill Tonight” – 3:43
“Hurricane” – 4:25
“Memories” – 3:26
“Trade Mistakes” – 3:36
“Ready to Go (Get Me Out of My Mind)” – 3:37
“Always” – 2:34
“The Calendar” – 4:43
“Sarah Smiles” – 3:33
“Nearly Witches (Ever Since We Met…)” – 4:17
Cover of Vices and Virtues
Reporter’s rating: 8.1/10
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