Review Summary: "Death of a Bachelor" has some good, some bad, and some straight-up dirty,
I'm not gonna be bias here. Really, I'm not. I wanted to like this album. Did I expect to like it? Not really. Did I want to like it? I did. Did I? Kind of. I had heard some Panic songs in the past, and most weren't too bad at all. I liked Brendon's vocals and the instrumentation. While it wasn't all my cup of meat, I definitely could appreciate it. However, I wasn't really interested. But my friend is obsessed with this group (along with similar groups like Twenty One Pilots and Fall Out Boy), and was stoked for a new record. So out of curiosity, I pulled up Spotify, searched up the record and listened from beginning to end. It was a quick 36 minutes, so it wasn't dragging and I wasn't getting bored listening to it. However, I came to the conclusion this was a pretty meh record. So I decided to take this album head on, and give my honest thoughts on it.
Now, because this record has a lot of ups and downs, I decided to do something that's a bit frowned upon. I'm going to take this song by song. Yes, a track by track review, but different. God forgive me, for I have sinned.
The album opens up with "Victorious". Right from the get-go, this song showed every error that would pop-up on this album. The song contains dumb beats, fake claps, bunch of woah-ohs, and lackluster lyrics. Really this song should've been discarded at the start. The lyrics are truly a bad attempt at trying to be creative and clever, and fall flat on their ass and ultimately fail. However, Brendon's vocal performance really helps the song, and does a moderate job at saving it. However, all of the songs on the album contain superb vocal performances by Mr. Urie. Does it save the songs? Not entirely, however it helps immensely and makes it a bit more listenable and easier to appreciate. Fortuantely, the album begins to climb with some pretty above average-good songs. "Don't Threaten Me With A Good Time" is a fine track. Of course, the best part of the track is the Rock Lobster sample. The rest of the song is fine, but it contains some of the same issues that "Victorious" had, except they were improved upon. "Hallelujah" is a fine church-like track, with Brendon harmonizing with a church choir. The chorus is the most memorable part, but the rest is fine also. The song introduces the theatrical theme, with a sprinkle of Sinatra influence, that partly covers the album. It honestly feels very forced in some of the songs, however in "Emperor's New Clothes" it works. The track was my favorite in my first initial listen, as it contains dark and brooding theatrical elements with a powerful and energetic chorus, a pop element that fits, the track has an abundance of pros that the album really should've done well with. The title track is also a fine song, with a cool intro, and a very classical theme. This song, however, shows where the theatrical element feels very forced in. The song is jam packed with theatric themes, Sinatra influences, and classical broadway music. It definitely feels very forced, however the song is still good. I will say that one good point about the record is that, no matter how hard it can fail, the songs are constructed to be very catchy, and they are. The songs may not be superb, however you just can't help grooving and bouncing along to it. Props to you Mr. Urie.
The album falls on it's ass for a short 3 minutes, with "Crazy=Genius,". This is another example where the theatric themes feel stupid and forced, with the dominating swing theme on the song. The track just becomes repetitive, as most of the songs end up being, and quickly gets boring. However, the record picks up again with the fast moving "LA Devotee". The track starts with a subtle but quickly-paced drum beat, that slides into a fine verse. The pre-chorus, chorus and the guitar are the highest points to the song, and truly shape the song. There isn't anything that feels forced or out of place, and nothing feels over repetitive. The song works, but it falls compared to the next song. The next track is the best song on the album, titled "Golden Days,". Golden Days contains every aspect that the album really should've succeeded with. Golden Days contains a great verse, good instrumentation, a strong chorus and nicely done instrumentation. Every misstep the album has taken so far was repaired, and turned into the longest track on the album, and it deserves to be the longest, and deserves a listen.
Unfortunately, the album fails after Golden Days. 'The Good, The Bad, and The Dirty," is easily the worst song on the album. It starts with a cheesy "woah-oh" and it dwelves into a full-on pop song, and it's bad. The song fails in every way, and takes every misstep and just makes it worse. "House of Memories" is incredibly boring and insincere. The lyrics are stupid, and it's just boring and nearly unlistenable. It's the calmest song on the album, so that makes it a bit more listenable, however it's just straight boring and dull. "Impossible Year" sounds like it belongs in a broadway musical. The piano is fine, but the vocals and the horns, added with the piano, all make a broadway musical song. It's a fine, slow closer to the album, with lyrics about losing people, and the lyrics are not half bad. The song ends with a low, ambient noise, and it leaves you in darkness to reflect on the album.
I want to take short time to summarize what fails and what succeeds. What fails? There's a lot of thing that hurt the record. For one, the lyrics are mostly lackluster. They read like a difficult attempt to be clever and creative, but end up looking dumb and mostly uninteresting. The theatric themes feel really forced in some places, as they end up looking awkward and stupid. However, in some cases they do work, such as in "Emperor's New Clothes,". The pop feel is definitely different from past efforts by the group, and it is amazing that Brendan Urie made this album by himself. The songs also suffer from lots of repetition, and they all sometimes fall flat. The pop formula is all present, with stupid vocal samples, clapping, cheesy hip-hop beats etc. However, this album succeeds in some other places as well. The feel of the record doesn't always feel forced, and works in the album's favor. Brendan is also a superb vocalist, and really compliments the tracks. His instrumentation skills are fine and he's talented for sure, but his vocal efforts overshadow his instrumental abilities. The middle of this record is definitely a high point, with "Don't Threaten Me With A Good Time," "Emperor's New Clothes," "Death of a Bachelor," "LA Devotee," and "Golden Days," all being average-good/great tracks. So when this album succeeds, it does so brilliantly, but it's so hard to deny that the negatives really bookend the positives.
That leaves me with my conclusion. Honestly, "Death of a Bachelor" really ends up being just average. The album has little replay value, and the only song I'll probably go back to would be "Golden Days". The record has it's fun moments, but it all ends up being forgettable, with the negatives really ruining some of the album's moments. It has everything that Fall Out Boy, or any pop album contains. Samples that mostly get ruined, dumb beats and ultimately wasted potential are all in the album somewhere. There is definitely good parts to this album, but unfortunately the negatives ultimatley hurt the album pretty badly. This album could've been a lot better, as there is so much potential here, but unfortunately it just ends up being painfully average.
Favorite Track: Golden Days
Least Favorite Track: The Good, The Bad, and The Dirty
