Panic! At the Disco

Did you miss Panic At The Disco on Jimmy Kimmel's show last night? Not a problem -- there's video of the band playing "Nine In The Afternoon" and "The Green Gentleman" right below these words.

 

The band really seems to like playing these songs live, and the orchestra they brought along is a nice touch. It definitely looks like they're doing a far more straightforward show than they've ever done before. I, personally, like it, because it shows a new confidence in the band. They don't have to hide behind their version of the Circe De Soleil anymore -- they just stand proud as a band and play their songs.

 

Here are the performances, for your enjoyment:

 

"Nine in the Afternoon":

 

 

"The Green Gentleman":

 

This is kind of amazing. Someone snagged some really good quality of three songs off the new Panic At The Disco album at the band's show in Stockholm, Sweden -- shockingly enough they contain steady camera work, nobody screaming the wrong lyrics into the microphone, and actually capture the songs. As such, we now have a pretty solid idea of what the new album sounds like [unless someone yanks these videos down, anyway.]

 

If the headline didn't clue you in? It sounds like The Beatles. Not a little, but a lot. The band clearly spent all their time in the cabin building a time machine that can traverse space and time, so they could become a 1960s British band. There is no other way to explain the transformation. Listen for yourselves:

 

"The Green Gentleman"

 

"She's A Handsome Woman"

 

"Mad As Rabbits"

 

 

See? Is it just me? It's kind of amazing that the band decided to go in such a different direction. I'm honestly not sure how I feel about it. It's vaguely catchy, but at the same time, it sounds old to me. Most likely because it screams "1960s" at me. So... is the new Panic At The Disco going to enjoy the same popularity and buzz with this album as they did with the last?

 

Time will tell, I suppose.

 

While we've known for some time that the Honda Civic Tour will be headlined by Panic At The Disco this year, we didn't have concrete dates, or support acts. And now we do.

 

The 2008 Honda Civic tour will be headlined by Panic At The Disco, and also feature The Hush Sound, Motion City Soundtrack, and Phantom Planet. It seems like they learned a bit from last year: first, it's in smaller venues than the 2007 version was. And second? They don't have some random rapper on there who just doesn't fit in with the other bands at all. Good choices, I think.

 

I mean, NYC could actually be fun -- Roseland is one of the biggest "small venues" in the city -- but there aren't seats, so people can roam freely and actually enjoy the show and dance around -- instead of being confined to a seat.

 

The tour runs from April through June, and here's the list of confirmed venues and dates.

 

April 10 Warfield San Francisco, CA
April 12 Soma San Diego, CA
April 13 Mesa Amphitheatre Phoenix, AZ
April 15 Brady Theatre Oklahoma City, OK
April 17 Thomas Assembly Center Ruston, LA
April 18 Palladium Ballroom Dallas, TX
April 19 Stubb’s BBQ Austin, TX
April 20 Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Houston, TX
April 22 Ruth Eckerd Hall Tampa, FL
April 23 The Fillmore Miami Beach, FL
April 24 House of Blues Orlando, FL
April 26 The Tabernacle Atlanta, GA
April 29 House of Blues Myrtle Beach, SC
April 30 Constitution Hall Washington DC
May 2 Alfond Arena at the University of Maine Orono, ME
May 3 RPI Field House Troy, NY
May 6 Gordon Fieldhouse - Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY
May 7 Roseland Ballroom New York, NY
May 9 Festival Pier Philadelphia, PA
May 10 Chevrolet Theatre Wallingford, CT
May 11 Bank of America Pavilion Boston, MA
May 13 Metropolis Montreal, QC
May 14 The Sound Academy Toronto, ON
May 16 Tower City Amphitheatre Cleveland, OH
May 17 PromoWest-Outdoor (LC Pavilion) Columbus, OH
May 18 Egyptian Room at Murat Centre Indianapolis, IN
May 20 The Fillmore Theatre Detroit, MI
May 23 Congress Theatre Chicago, IL
May 25 Eagles Ballroom Milwaukee, WI
May 27 Myth Minneapolis, MN
May 30 The Pageant St. Louis, MO
May 31 Westfair Amphitheatre Omaha, NE
June 1 Uptown Theatre Kansas City, MO
June 3 The Fillmore Auditorium Denver, CO
June 4 Salt Air Theatre Salt Lake City, UT
June 6 PNE Forum Vancouver, BC
June 7 Paramount Theatre Seattle, WA
June 8 Portland Exposition Center Portland, OR
June 13 The Pearl Las Vegas, NV
June 14 The Theater at the Honda Center Anaheim, CA

 

It's safe to say tickets will go on sale soon.

Panic At The Disco has really unleashed a lot of news today. First off, I didn't spell their name incorrectly -- MTV is reporting they've dropped the ! from their name. That will take a bit of getting used to, no? Either way, the band has not totally abandoned their love for unnecessary punctuation, as the confirmed title for their second album, due March 25th, is Pretty. Odd.

 

This was clear from their official Web site's puzzle this morning, but representatives for the band have made it official. I like it when things are done this way; "Hey, here's the title of the album." It's much easier than playing games, no?

 

Furthermore, Panic will be headlining the 2008 Honda Civic Tour. Oh, man... there are so many "clown car" jokes to make, I don't even know where to start. Of course, Ryan Ross has repeatedly said they're done with the circus gimmicks, so the jokes may not even be necessary. Still, just how many porno mimes can you fit into a Honda Civic?

 

The rest of the bands on the tour have yet to be announced, so feel free to guess away. I'd put my money on Cute Is What We Aim For, depending on their recording schedule....

 

And finally, here's the latest promotional picture of the band. It seems to feature a house more prominently than the guys, but you have to admit -- that's a pretty sweet house.

 

 

So there you have it. A lot going on in the world of Panic At The Disco. I can't believe how weird it feels to leave out the exclamation point!

 

 

Step one: Contact one of the guys who runs the band's MySpace. Step two: tell him you and/or a friend of yours will kill yourself and only Ryan Ross can save you. Step three: Get mocked online; do not get Ryan Ross' number.

Confused? Well, Ryan Ross recently revealed that the band was about three-quarters done with their second album when they decided to scrap it and start over from the beginning. Cue fans begging for the songs that were killed by the band immediately.

This interview is so cute, it might beat out a basket of puppies in a cuteness contest. See for yourself.

Now that Ryan Ross is 21, he's allowed to have his birthday party at the bar owned by Pete Wentz. Lots of famous people came to the party, including Travis McCoy, Gabe Saporta, and Ryland Blackington. And there was cake!

Oh yes, the outspoken singer of Senses Fail had some harsh words for Panic! At the Disco recently, saying, "so many bands feel it's necessary to look intelligent, and create an image and credibility. The kids in Panic! At The Disco claim they’re into Morrissey and the Smiths. That’s bullshit, they like Blink 182.... Bands worry too much about their image, and it's lame.” And hey, Pete Wentz, he has some words for you, too....

And the quality on both videos is quite good. Check out the band's live versions of the new songs "Middle of the Summer" and "Nine in the Afternoon." It's pretty clear these guys are getting close to something big with their new album, eh?