C'Mon

Whew. That last entry must have really taken it out of me. Note to self: never do that again. I've also realized how difficult it is to keep up a blog without internet access at one's place of residence. Bah. Well, on to the music.

Death Cab's new single, "You Are a Tourist," is awesome. Yes, it's Death Cab, they have a signature sound, and you think after so many albums you'd get a little tired of it. Not the case. They had me at the guitar riff. It also has a sweet music video, check it out.



The entire album comes out May 31st. I'm excited to see what Death Cab has in store for me this year. Also, I now have my ticket for their Salt Lake show in August. I'm kinda ticked it's in a stadium, so the sound could be lousy, but whatever, I'm still excited.

Now. One of my favorite bands I've been listening to for the past few years is called "fun." F-U-N-period. All lower case. Mr. Nate was in the Format before, but they split, and then he, Andrew, and Jack got together with some sweet musicians and recorded an album. Yes, maybe I have a slightly greater love for them because two of the three band members have my brothers' names, but their music rocks. Pop-rocks. The only word I can use to accurately describe the album is "fun." Pure, wonderful, fun. Check out their album if you feel like smiling.

Panic! at the Disco and fun. are beginning their tour today. And guess where they skip. Utah. Go figure. Then I thought, wait, I'll be in Boston for most of the summer anyway, and I'm sure they play there... and they do! I checked! In... May. Boo. This may be one of the greatest band-combos touring together, and I'm missing it. Yes, I cried quietly to myself as reality sank in. And, as if to anger me further, the two recorded a single together entitled "C'Mon." I can just hear them... C'Mon Rhiannon, why aren't you listening to us play, hmm? Everybody's doing it... The single's great, although I think it'd be way more accurate to say it's by fun. featuring Panic! at the Disco rather than the other way around. It sounds like fun. Not Panic. Lo siento, muchachos.

That's all for now, Rhi is out.

Don't Panic!

Vices and Virtues.

Clever album title, no? Sounds very Panic! at the Disco-y. Now, as one who seeks to express their musical views and opinions, why on earth, you may ask, would I choose to start off with a band as well-known and popular as Panic? Truthfully, they've just been on my mind. I've been inexplicably drawn to their latest album. So bear with me. We'll get to the more obscure bands, I promise. First, a history.

Debut album: A Fever You Can't Sweat Out.
That's pretty much how this album went for me. I felt... sick. And I couldn't recover. Until I stopped the album. No, it really wasn't that bad, there are some very catchy tunes on this album, and "I Write Sins Not Tragedies" made them a must-have for every high school teenager out there. If there's one thing you can expect from this band, it's theatricality and drama, which this album has plenty of. Some of the lyrics are really clever too. But if you listen to the album all the way through, it just seems... young. Angsty. Angry. Cynical. They're a very new band at this point, so you'd expect them to sound young, but after a few tries, I just couldn't get myself to listen to the album anymore. It just made my heart hurt.

Sophomore album: Pretty. Odd.
Also, perfect title. This album was so experimental and different, but it still had that sense of drama, that artistic and theatric touch that defines Panic. May I just say, especially after the first album, I LOVED this. Panic! played with sound effects, with different instruments, with voices... it was amazing. The songwriting also took a turn for the better, it matured, and it became much more relatable for me. Needless to say, after listening to this album for a few months straight, I was expecting great things from this band. And then...

The Split.
Change is good. Change is unavoidable. And so it was with Panic. It is reported to have been quite amiable, a mutual sort of separation, which is comforting. But I think we were all worried about what would happen next. Let's take a look...

Third album: Vices and Virtues.
Did Panic! return to their original sound? Yep, you can definitely hear it. Did they preserve some of their experimental qualities? Yeah, in a sense. Did it work? Oh yeah. I will not lie to you, I was kind of surprised by how much I've loved this new album. The melodies are incredibly catchy, but it's the harmonies that provide all the support to the music. Spencer's beats add the Panic! attitude we love, and Brendon's lyrics have done nothing but improve. Almost every song has strings as well, and you know how much I love bands that record with strings. Or brass. Or symphonies. I read somewhere that they'd been listening to Arcade Fire's "The Suburbs" album, and it shows. Funnily enough, one of my favorite parts of this album is the insert. Remember how I said Panic!'s trademark of sorts is their theatric/artistic take on everything? Well, their lyrics layout only affirms this fact. It's absolutely brilliant. Now, on to the music...

1. The Ballad of Mona Lisa - So, SO catchy. You'll be humming this for days. The music-box-like keyboard is fantastically creepy, the drums are perfect... It is very, very first-album-Panic, but more... refined, or polished maybe. You'll love it all the same.

2. Let's Kill Tonight - The transition from the first song to this one is very fun. And much more electric. Normally, I'm not one for electric tunes, but this intro works.

3. Hurricane - Cool song, not my favorite, but it fits in the album perfectly.

4. Memories - The melody is fun, also not my favorite, BUT, the lyrics of this song intrigue me. It sounds like Mr. Urie is talking about a couple of newly-weds. Kinda like Utah people. And, being an LDS girl from Utah, it makes me laugh. However, we also know that Panic! has now learned the subtle art of using lyrics that sound like one thing but really mean another. There's speculation that this song is about the guys who split from the band. This theory leaves me with one question: which of the past band members is the girl?

5. Trade Mistakes - One of the top three songs on the album. The lyrics are genius, and the melody/harmonies match the words unnaturally well. The bridge especially... it sounds like he's pleading so hard it almost hurts, but somehow he's still singing beautifully... I also love string quartets, which may contribute to my love of this song.

6. Ready to Go (Get Me Out Of My Mind) - This song is very fun, the choruses are great and, again, super catchy. Well done Panic! for writing so many catchy melodies.

7. Always - Fantastic. The acoustic guitar is something we really only heard on the second album, and I am so glad they kept this style in their music. This is definitely not your typical love song, but it is absolutely beautiful. Again, there are strings playing, which significantly contributes to its beauty.

8. The Calendar - The dissonance at the beginning, the sounds of clockwork, the days passing... It's brilliant.

9. Sarah Smiles - The accordion-sounding melody at the beginning is a perfect way to set up this song. This style both matches the rest of the album and throws it off kilter a bit... the lyrics may also be one of those "say one thing, mean another" things. Sarah is the name of Mr. Urie's lovely lady, but the lyrics sound a little spiteful. Don't think he meant that.

10. Nearly Witches (Ever Since We Met...) - The children's choir singing the French translation of the chorus is marvelous! This song sounds like it could be in a musical theater production, and the fact that they left in the little sound bit of the teacher lecturing the students before they start ("Kids, you have to remember I'm up here conducting you for a reason, ok? Watch me, watch my fingers. Here we go; ready? Watch me. One and, two and...) makes it that much more real. It's a perfect finale, and the children singing "Mona Lisa, pleased to please ya" as a final thought wraps the album up in a beautiful, brilliant little bow.

As a whole, Vices and Virtues is an incredible third album for Panic! at the Disco. I've heard people describe it as a child, spawn of the first and second albums. To this, I say "Yes." But I'd also add that this child has grown up and progressed on its own for a while before it was released to the ears of the eagerly awaiting public. If you're in the mood for pop rock mixed with theater and a touch of brown sugar, you're in for a real treat.