I originally came across Panic two years ago. "Hmm." I said, after taking a longer than customary decision period. "I like them." Their music was, to me, different. At the time, only A Fever You Can't Sweat Out had been released. I found the rhythms hypnotic, and toe-tappingly good. In my head, I did my customary tear-it-apart. I listened to each song, over and over and over again, and I listened to a different instrument each time. "They use more than the customary instruments." I thought, a little awed. "Hell. Yes."
The music was hard to genre. Was it electronic? They were definitely using a synthesizer, but...nah. Rock? Probably. In a backwards sort of way. Emo? Well, they were emotional. Punk? Now I was just being silly.
After giving up my attempt to categorize them, I looked at their lyrics. Originally, I had done what was average for me. Listen, and make sense of it the best I can. Put it to my own experiences. And I could do this for some of the songs. Build God, Then We'll Talk was easy. It was a story. But others...What, I wondered, was the meaning of Camisado? I know now that it's a tale of an alcoholic father, and am glad I was unable to relate.
Their new album came out earlier this year, and I did something I normally don't do. I grabbed my wallet, walked to Wal-mart, and bought it. I'd heard rumors of it being different.
"Different good, or different bad?" I had asked.
Those I questioned shrugged their shoulders, and gave me helpless looks. One friend even went so far as to splutter out an "I can't tell yet!"
To tell the truth, I wasn't sure at first either. It was folksy, and mellow, and vaguely reminded me of the Beatles. There was less bitterness, and at one point, they even sang of clouds. But there are more instrumentation in this than the last album. I could hear low brass and low reeds in the backgrounds of some songs. The songs are so light and airy. And as with the first album, the more I listened to it, the more I liked it. The lead singer's voice matured, the lyricists lyrics did too, and the whole band seems to be pulling itself together before my very eyes.
I've seen interviews with the band members, disparaging of being seen for their faces, and not their music. And I've seen too many a comment over the looks of the band members (often made by young fans) to prove this worry something other than groundless. And while I am certainly not someone who will turn a blind eye to a pretty face, I'd just like to let anyone listening know, that I heard the music first.
