The first thing that probably comes to mind is dancing around your bedroom, jamming out to “I Write Sins Not Tragedies” (2005) in middle school. Well, they’re back and they’re better than ever.
Panic! at the Disco (or as they’re more affectionately known in the pop-punk world, P!ATD or simply Panic!) released their fifth album, Death of a Bachelor, on January 15. The band was originally made up of four members, Ryan Ross, Jon Walker, Spencer Smith, and Brendon Urie. Over the past ten years, members have come and gone. After the announcement of drummer Spencer Smith’s departure from the band in April 2015, the band is now solely made up by lead vocalist Brendon Urie. Death of a Bachelor is Urie’s debut as a solo artist under the Panic! name.
So why is this album anything to care about? It’s just another speck on the pop-punk world’s radar, right? WRONG. Not only did Urie do the majority of the instrumentation on the album himself, but the album also made its way to No. 1 on the Billboard charts for the week of February 6th, knocking Adele’s 25 and David Bowie’s Blackstar (Rest in peace, Ziggy Stardust) albums down to numbers 3 and 4, respectively.
The beauty of Panic! at the Disco is that you never know what to expect from each album since they each have their own style and sound. Pulling inspiration from music greats such as Queen, Frank Sinatra, the B-52’s, and Beyoncé, Death of a Bachelor serves as the perfect transition between their synth-heavy album, Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die (2013), into a new style that mixes pop-rock music with swing and big band jazz. The album has been compared to the band’s first album, A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out (2005), by fans and critics alike. So, if you liked that album, you should definitely check out the new one.
The album, Death of a Bachelor, is available for purchase at most music retailers or listen to for free on streaming services such as Spotify and Pandora.
Panic! at the Disco is on tour in the United States this summer with Weezer and special guest Andrew McMahon and the Wilderness.
Check out the band’s latest music video for their single, “Death of a Bachelor” (2016):