hubbub at the dance hall
Last night, I bumped into beckaandzac on the U Street Metro platform, which was remarkable for MANY REASONS. One is that Becka is ALWAYS a lovely person to run into, and the other is that she was just coming from hanging out with fangirls at the 9:30 Club, which was MY destination.
For lo, I was off to see not only my second Panic! At the Disco show, but my second HALLOWEEN P!ATD show. I don't know why these guys seem to only hit up DC at Halloween, but I'm not complaining. :)
I got to the venue about 15 before doors to find the biggest line I've yet to enter- I've been part of plenty of sold out shows before, but normally, it's for artists that I care enough about to show up 1 hr+ before doors, SORRY P!ATD. I DON'T CARE THAT MUCH, I JUST LIKE YOUR MUUUUSIC. I had already decided to avoid the worst of the crowds and snag a place upstairs, which I think was a WISE CHOICE INDEED. I had room to breathe and a great view, so I was a happy camper, even if it IS a tradeoff in intimacy. That being said, last time I saw these guys was back in 2008 in a giant stadium venue, so this was already much better. I HATE STADIUM SHOWS, I REALLY DO. I love the energy of being up close and personal with the band- Martha Wainwright once dropped her guitar pick onto my shoulder and it was AWESOME, THAT IS WHAT I'M TALKING 'BOUT.
The first opener was Foxy Shazam and, well, Emily was unimpressed. The band seemed to be putting WAY too much pressure on itself to be bombastic and energetic and their songs kept... fizzling out and it just didn't work as a set, not for me. Second up was Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy fame and... AGAIN, not for me. I really enjoy a lot of FOB and was hoping to enjoy his solo stuff, but I was just SO underwhelmed by the songs.
FINALLY, it was P!ATD time. Now, here are my brief thoughts about these guys- I don't know much about the split that happened among the band members. I know Brendan and Spencer stuck together and kept the name, while Ryan and The Other Guy went off elsewhere to do Who Knows What. Brendan has been the front man since the band came to prominence, but I feel like I heard rumors of tensions because Ryan USED to be the front man and it all seemed vaguely soap opera-esque, particularly when the split happened. Brendan is charismatic and talented as hell... and now he doesn't really have to share the spotlight any more. He'll goof around with the other guys, but last night was His Show, hands down. The dude came out dressed like JESUS CHRIST, for heaven's sake- I'm not saying it's not deserved, but I'm pretty sure the guy is a bit of an egomaniacal asshole. (PLEASE DON'T TELL THE BANDOM GIRLS I SAID THIS) That's just how he comes across to me! I really like him as an artist, but THEM'S THE FACTS as I read them, based solely on his onstage persona.
THAT BEING SAID.
It was a great show! Brendan was Jesus and then became ~*Sexy Jesus*~ (his words) by spending 95% of the show shirtless when his robe got too hot. He kept the wig, however, which just made him look like a chorus member from Hair. Spencer was Ron Burgundy and wore NO PANTS (Ron Burgundy has no pants! Ron Burgundy NEEDS NO PANTS). The set list spanned all three P!ATD albums pretty well, with a little more time being given to the most recent album and not a lot spent on Pretty.Odd, which is a pity, IMO.
YET AGAIN, a young crowd totally failed on crowd surfing. I don't know what it is about Kids Today, but they KEEP TRYING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN, and then failing miserably. I have SEEN successful crowd surfing and it comes from a ~*magical blend*~ of shared energy and excitement and synergy that binds a crowd TOGETHER, not just to the performers. Without that, you end up with awkwardness and falling bodies and it is NOT PRETTY. *grump grump grump* From my vantage point last night, I WATCHED as they kept dropping people in what had to be painful ways for all concerned. AH WELL. More genuinely distressing, of course, is witnessing my second crowd that doesn't understand the sacred duty of an audience to yell its collective head off to bring on the encore. I don't CARE that we all know they're ready to come back out after a few minutes, IT IS PART OF THE SACRED CONTRACT BETWEEN AUDIENCE AND MUSICIAN SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL. This crowd just... started chatting when the band left the stage. There was a brief attempt at chanting "Panic" and then, god help us, "USA" and it just makes me WEEP FOR THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY.
So onto the pictures. :)
For lo, I was off to see not only my second Panic! At the Disco show, but my second HALLOWEEN P!ATD show. I don't know why these guys seem to only hit up DC at Halloween, but I'm not complaining. :)
I got to the venue about 15 before doors to find the biggest line I've yet to enter- I've been part of plenty of sold out shows before, but normally, it's for artists that I care enough about to show up 1 hr+ before doors, SORRY P!ATD. I DON'T CARE THAT MUCH, I JUST LIKE YOUR MUUUUSIC. I had already decided to avoid the worst of the crowds and snag a place upstairs, which I think was a WISE CHOICE INDEED. I had room to breathe and a great view, so I was a happy camper, even if it IS a tradeoff in intimacy. That being said, last time I saw these guys was back in 2008 in a giant stadium venue, so this was already much better. I HATE STADIUM SHOWS, I REALLY DO. I love the energy of being up close and personal with the band- Martha Wainwright once dropped her guitar pick onto my shoulder and it was AWESOME, THAT IS WHAT I'M TALKING 'BOUT.
The first opener was Foxy Shazam and, well, Emily was unimpressed. The band seemed to be putting WAY too much pressure on itself to be bombastic and energetic and their songs kept... fizzling out and it just didn't work as a set, not for me. Second up was Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy fame and... AGAIN, not for me. I really enjoy a lot of FOB and was hoping to enjoy his solo stuff, but I was just SO underwhelmed by the songs.
FINALLY, it was P!ATD time. Now, here are my brief thoughts about these guys- I don't know much about the split that happened among the band members. I know Brendan and Spencer stuck together and kept the name, while Ryan and The Other Guy went off elsewhere to do Who Knows What. Brendan has been the front man since the band came to prominence, but I feel like I heard rumors of tensions because Ryan USED to be the front man and it all seemed vaguely soap opera-esque, particularly when the split happened. Brendan is charismatic and talented as hell... and now he doesn't really have to share the spotlight any more. He'll goof around with the other guys, but last night was His Show, hands down. The dude came out dressed like JESUS CHRIST, for heaven's sake- I'm not saying it's not deserved, but I'm pretty sure the guy is a bit of an egomaniacal asshole. (PLEASE DON'T TELL THE BANDOM GIRLS I SAID THIS) That's just how he comes across to me! I really like him as an artist, but THEM'S THE FACTS as I read them, based solely on his onstage persona.
THAT BEING SAID.
It was a great show! Brendan was Jesus and then became ~*Sexy Jesus*~ (his words) by spending 95% of the show shirtless when his robe got too hot. He kept the wig, however, which just made him look like a chorus member from Hair. Spencer was Ron Burgundy and wore NO PANTS (Ron Burgundy has no pants! Ron Burgundy NEEDS NO PANTS). The set list spanned all three P!ATD albums pretty well, with a little more time being given to the most recent album and not a lot spent on Pretty.Odd, which is a pity, IMO.
YET AGAIN, a young crowd totally failed on crowd surfing. I don't know what it is about Kids Today, but they KEEP TRYING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN, and then failing miserably. I have SEEN successful crowd surfing and it comes from a ~*magical blend*~ of shared energy and excitement and synergy that binds a crowd TOGETHER, not just to the performers. Without that, you end up with awkwardness and falling bodies and it is NOT PRETTY. *grump grump grump* From my vantage point last night, I WATCHED as they kept dropping people in what had to be painful ways for all concerned. AH WELL. More genuinely distressing, of course, is witnessing my second crowd that doesn't understand the sacred duty of an audience to yell its collective head off to bring on the encore. I don't CARE that we all know they're ready to come back out after a few minutes, IT IS PART OF THE SACRED CONTRACT BETWEEN AUDIENCE AND MUSICIAN SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL. This crowd just... started chatting when the band left the stage. There was a brief attempt at chanting "Panic" and then, god help us, "USA" and it just makes me WEEP FOR THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY.
So onto the pictures. :)
Click to view