When Panic! at the Disco took the "!" out of their name, they also took the "!" out of their music.
Formerly flamboyant and androgynous, with a circuslike tinge to their music and performance, the young Las Vegas foursome has thrown away the makeup; fired the jugglers and the clowns; and tried to be more mature on their sophomore CD, "Pretty. Odd."
So far, the fans are not buying it.
Panic's debut album, 2005's "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out," sold 1.67 million units, according to Billboard, thanks mostly to the hit single — and MTV Video of the Year — "I Write Sins Not Tragedies." But the new album, after debuting at No. 2 in Billboard in March, has slipped down to No. 76 in just eight weeks. The one single released from it, "Nine in the Afternoon," never even made it into the Top 50.
Maybe they'll redeem themselves in concert, as they headline the 2008 Honda Civic Tour, playing Saturday night at the Paramount. The value-priced, band-heavy show also includes fellow pop/rock groups Motion City Soundtrack, the Hush Sound and Phantom Planet.
Panic's new look and sound are inspired by guitarist and chief songwriter Ryan Ross' embrace of the '60s sounds of the Beatles, Bob Dylan and the Who. Some production work on the album was done at Abbey Road, the London studio made famous by the Beatles.
In addition to a softer, folk-
ier, '60s-influenced sound, Ross has also adopted a hippie look, with tie-dyed or flowered shirts, striped pants, Beatles boots and the like. Band members have grown their hair longer, and two of them are letting their beards grow. Baby-faced Ross and handsome lead singer Brendon Urie no longer do the playful, bisexual bit onstage that raised some eyebrows.
The band is going through a growing-up phase, and it might take a while for fans to catch up. Panic remains a solid, talented band with a gift for sunny songs and catchy hooks. They'll survive this bumpy patch.
Patrick MacDonald: 206-464-2312 or pmacdonald@seattletimes.com
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