Live Review - Panic! At The Disco - Rogers Arena, Vancouver 11/08/2018
Legends of alt-rock, Panic! At The Disco, made a stop in Vancouver this past Saturday on their Pray For The Wicked tour. Rogers Arena was packed full of fans of all ages and walks of life, singing and dancing along to every word out of Brendon Urie’s mouth, which is a true testament to their longevity and influence as a band.
Over the past fourteen years, Panic! have made a place for themselves in the music industry, taking themselves from a small band in the alt/emo scene in 2004, to a globally recognized band with a massive following that continues to grow and put on incredible arena shows like the one I had the pleasure of seeing this weekend.
The production value of this tour is truly spectacular. With thirteen massive screens towering over the stage, it’s hard not to be fully immersed in each unique landscape given to every song. During Death of a Bachelor, Urie brings the audience out of this fictional world and back to earth as he makes his with through the audience, shaking hands with everyone as he sings his way back to the back of the arena. He couldn’t seem to get over how polite the fans he encountered on his journey were and told everyone multiple times as he got himself situated at a piano, ready to be flown over the arena, while he plays and sings a cover of Bonnie Raitt’s I Can’t Make You Love Me.
Though the stacked twenty-eight song setlist doesn’t leave much time for chit chat as he bounces around the stage, a ball of energy, every moment he does take feels to be completely genuine and from the heart. Showing his gratitude at the rainbow lights displayed by the entire arena doing Girls/Girls/Boys, talking about his stint on Broadway in Kinky Boots, and taking a moment towards the end of the show he reminded everyone in the room how important it is that they’re here and how much they mean to him. Despite doing this for 14 years, Urie still seems to love what he does and be in awe of the impact he makes.
Having personally been a fan of Panic! for twelve years, the severe lack of older songs was a little disappointing. I would’ve loved to have seen more than just I Write Sins Not Tragedies, and Nine in the Afternoon from the first two albums. Though, that isn’t to say that if you were more of a fan during the A Fever I Can’t Sweat Out or Pretty Odd days that you shouldn’t head out to a show on this tour. Anyone who has seen them before will know that seeing a Panic! At The Disco show isn’t something to be missed. Even if you don’t know every single word to every single song, this show is one of the most impressive and entertaining productions you will have seen or are likely to see in a long time.
Words and Photography by Kelli Anne Lane