Panic! at the Disco bassist Dallon Weekes joined the band in 2009 shortly after bassit John Walker and founding guitarist Ryan Ross left. Alongside frontman Brendon Urie, Weekes co-wrote most of the songs on 2013’s “Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die!” but did not do the same for certified platinum album “Death of a Bachelor,” for which Urie worked primarily with outside writers.

Weekes’ departure from the band in December 2016 left fans wondering who was left to help Urie continue the legacy of his astonishing vocals. While guitarist Kenneth Harris and drummer Dan Pawlovich are still active for touring, along with the recent addition of female bassist Nicole Row, it seems Urie is the sole member of the band left to work on new content.

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But to no surprise, Urie has continued on. After the 2016-2017 “Death of a Bachelor” tour, Urie went back to his home outside Hollywood, CA and continued to work on new music, all the while discussing his process with fans via interviews and Instagram Live.  

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“One of them sounds like you could be in a 70’s roller rink, and the word f*ck is in every chorus,” Urie told fans in an Instagram Live video referring to the upcoming album “Pray For the Wicked” to be released on June 22. “Actually there’s a lot of songs on this album that use tour transitions that I wrote and recorded for previous tours over the last couple years,” Urie later stated.

Urie has spoken in the past of his desire to experiment with new sounds and styles. Electronic producer Dillon Francis has confirmed an appearance in the studio with Urie, stating “Have I been working with Brendon Urie more? Yes. I've been working on stuff for his new album,” via Instagram Live. There has also been talk of collaboration with Fall Out Boy as bassit and lyricist Pete Wentz said in a recent interview “the boys have discussed doing a new project together.”

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This may be supported by the sound of the first of two released songs “Say Amen (Saturday Night)”, where the chorus shows close relation to the style of Fall Out Boy. The song starts with an interesting synth pop drum and bass loop, a sample sound which Panic! does not seem to primarily use. The 26 second chorus is used three times accounting for 42 percent of the song. However, listeners are exposed to very traditional Panic! verses which sound like they could have been used on “Death of a Bachelor,” although they would not particularly fit in with the theme. And with every good Panic! at the Disco song comes the famous high notes from Urie, and in this instance, he goes above and beyond.

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Then comes the second of two release songs titled “(F*ck A ) Silver Lining”. It again starts with a sample loop, possibly the “70’s roller rink” song Urie was referring to. The chorus is shorter at 19 seconds but is the first singing we hear from Urie in the song. In this instance, the verses sound more similar to a Fall Out Boy song than the chorus, but only because the two bands fall in the same music genre. After the first verse comes another chorus, followed by a bridge half way through the song rather than a traditional second verse. But the next verse follows, all the while over top the expected pop punk/ pop rock beat. Another short bridge leads to the third and final chorus of the 2:48 song. The chorus only accounts for 38 percent of this song, but the verses are a lot shorter than would normally be found in a Panic! song. Unfortunately in this song, fans are not granted access to the much anticipated high note from Urie.

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Overall I think both released songs are an interesting representation of where Urie is headed with the album. “It’s very honest in a way I think I haven’t been, from song to song. Dude, it's all over the place!” Urie said about the new album in an Instagram Live video.  Music is constantly evolving and Panic! is of no exception, especially when the given reason for Ryan Ross and Jon Walker leaving the band was due to creative differences, with Urie stating the three had different ideas as to the direction of the band.

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With any good artist or band comes the early release of the lead single, and as practiced more and more in the twenty-first century, the release of two or more lead singles. Often times these releases tend to be more up-tempo and catchier to attract attention towards listeners. Alongside the release of these two tracks, Panic! at the Disco posted a surprise announcement the day before a pop-up show in Cleveland last week. As expected given the band following, the 400-person capacity club was packed and saw a line stretching ¾ of a mile around the block 30 minutes before the show was set to start.

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The track names and lengths have been released by Urie, although these two songs are the only glimpse fans have gotten thus far. The “Pray For The Wicked” tour dates and locations have also been released, set to start July 11 and end August 18.

Many fans are thrilled to see Panic! has not faded away alongside the dismantlement of the band. As Urie continues on, there is no saying what he will pull out of his sleeve in the future.