PANIC! AT THE DISCO | LIVE REVIEW
Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, Mon 25 Mar
Panic! At The Disco built their reputation on theatrics. Back in 2005, when they were a bunch of heavily-fringed Las Vegas high schoolers peddling emo-disco anthems on Myspace, the band freaked out their fanbase by abandoning the preppy polo shirts and adopting a vaudevillian Clockwork Orange aesthetic. A host of decadent videos and circus-inspired tours followed, conducted and sustained by ringmaster Brendon Urie as the rest of the band walked away. After 15 years in the business and a recent 15 weeks at the top of the UK pop charts, Panic! has evolved into a polished pop spectacle.
It’s disappointing, then, that this tour feels more like an exercise in distraction than dramatics. Sure, Urie is a phenomenally talented vocalist in an impressive gold blazer, and his cheeky Marti Pellow grin is powerful enough to elicit a thousand screams from the wriggling pit of teenage fans at the Motorpoint Arena. His touring band and accompanying string trio are technically gifted and impeccably turned-out, the light show is like being caught up in a Star Wars battle scene, and the barrage of pyrotechnics and confetti must have given the venue’s health and safety officer a banging headache. The performers and instruments even emerged from beneath the stage and continued to rise and fall throughout the 27-song set. Clearly, no expense was spared.
But the visuals are more engaging than the act itself. The touring band have zero chemistry – bassist Nicole Row and guitarist Mike Naran are apparently stuck in a time loop, forcing them to awkwardly walk from opposite ends of the stage, meet in the middle and strike robotic “hi, we’re rock’n’roll stars” pose before returning to their corners. It takes Urie a good 10 songs to address the crowd, and even then it’s an unfinished half-story about learning to play piano. Despite soft-shoe shuffling across the stage, Urie struggles to fill the void left by the band’s lack of charisma. Instead, he pulls out a screaming falsetto to fill the gap – in every single song. Too much.
There are peaks among the troughs, however. Urie shines when sat behind his grand piano, elevated 20 feet above the stage, to sing a medley of Bonnie Raitt’s I Can’t Make You Love Me and Panic!’s recent hit Dying In LA. When he crawls on top of the lid to deliver the final chorus, the room is captivated. Girls/Girls/Boys is performed with rainbow lasers, a Pride flag and a heartfelt address on the importance of love and acceptance.
A mid-set cover of The Greatest Show is both impressive and ironic. Urie clearly loves what he does, and Panic’s back catalogue of pop hits is impressive. The material and his passion holds up – it’s just the rest of the show that lets him down.
words BETTI HUNTER photos JASPER WILKINS
