On Pretty.Odd, Panic At The Disco have ditched the (!) that used to follow the word "Panic" in their name. They haven't ditched their knack for writing sugary-sounding, yet lush power pop punk ditties that have the tweenaged girls screaming their lungs out. It's painfully apparent that PATD have are shooting for the moon. The band recorded the album at the legendary Abbey Road studio in the UK, and it employs an orchestra on Pretty.Odd. But the question remains: did the band overshoot and will their youthful fanbase appreciate such musical progression?
Apparently, these guys think they are The Beatles or even Cheap Trick. Some of the frivolous, upbeat energy of A Fever You Can't Sweat Out has been replaced by serious, expansive rock n' roll textures. The band isn't afraid to try a quirky ballad ("Northern Downpour," which is the album's best track) or a 1930s—style romp in the form of "I Have Friends In High Places." Tunes such as "Nine In The Afternoon" and "Do You Know What I'm Seeing" are humorless, despite the band’s sound being thickened by stringers and fuller arrangements, while "That Green Gentleman (Things Have Changed)" could easily double as the background music during a crucial parting-of-ways scene in any romantic comedy at the multiplex. That is, it's easily digestible, instantly memorable, but it doesn't exactly keep the mood light. It's as though PATD are trying a bit too hard to do a bit too much. On Pretty.Odd, they're like the kid with ADD that drank a can of coke through a Pixie stick straw.
— Amy Sciarretto
03.24.08
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