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Panic! at the Disco (known as Panic at the Disco between 2008 and 2009) is a grammy-nominated rock band formed in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2004. The band comprises vocalist and guitarist Brendon Urie and drummer Spencer Smith. In July 2009, guitarist Ryan Rossand bassist Jon Walker left the band, citing creative differences as the reason for their depature.[1] They have since formed a new band, entitled The Young Veins.[2]
Panic! at the Disco's debut album, A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, reached number 13 on the United States Billboard 200 and has sold over 2.2 million copies worldwide since its September 2005 release.[3] The band's second album, Pretty. Odd., was released on March 25, 2008 and debuted at number 2 in the US.
Formation and early years (2004–2005)
The band was formed in Las Vegas, Nevada, by two childhood friends — Ryan Ross on the guitar and Spencer Smith on the drums. Since the age of 13, the two played Blink-182 covers together in a two-piece band called "Pet Salamander". Later they recruited more members to create a band under the name of "The Summer League" with Brent Wilson and Trevor Howell, who would later leave the band.
Wilson met Brendon Urie at Palo Verde High School. Wilson asked Urie to try out as guitarist for the fledgling band, as they were looking for a replacement for Trevor at the time. Originally, Urie was not the band's lead singer. Rather, the position belonged to former guitarist and lyricistRyan Ross. However, when they heard Brendon sing backup vocals during a rehearsal, they were impressed with his backup vocal abilities and unanimously decided to make him the singer. The band then settled on the name 'Panic! at the Disco' which comes from the song "Panic" by Name Taken. The band contacted Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz through LiveJournal and sent him an internet link to their PureVolume site. Wentz took a trip to Las Vegas to meet the band. After seeing them practice, he asked if they would sign with his Fueled by Ramen imprint label Decaydance which made them the first on the new label.
A Fever You Can't Sweat Out (2005–2007)
Panic! at the Disco released their debut album A Fever You Can't Sweat Out on September 27, 2005, making a fan base through PureVolume and MySpace, though achieving little initial commercial recognition. After a consistent presence in PureVolume's top 10 signed artists, and reaching number one in MySpace's indie charts, Panic! at the Disco were featured on MTV's Total Request Live on January 17, 2006, where they premiered their music video for "I Write Sins Not Tragedies." Featuring Lucent Dossier Vaudeville Cirque and a circus wedding theme, the video débuted at #10 on the TRL countdown, later winning the Video of the Year award at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. The song was also featured and ran for a month as a "Hip Clipz" on the website of Curly Grrlz Skateboards. The single itself, released April 27, 2006 got to #7 in the US charts.
The band was originally third-billed for the Truckstops & Statelines Winter Tour in early 2006, which was headlined by The Academy Is... and included Acceptance as direct support and Hellogoodbye on the line-up. Due to their increase in popularity before and during the tour, the band ended up getting pushed above Acceptance to second-billed every night playing right before the headliner and "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out" outsold The Academy Is...'s debut album, "Almost Here" during the tour.
Their second single, "But It's Better If You Do", was released in the UK on May 1, 2006 where it debuted, and peaked, at #23. The accompanying music video, released the previous month, portrays the band playing in a speakeasy in 1930's America, which, according to Urie, shows "the dark and secluded style of Panic."
The band officially announced the departure of their bassist, Brent Wilson, with a message on the band's website on May 17, 2006. Wilson has since claimed that the decision to leave was not his, and that he was fired without warning for monetary reasons, though the rest of the band deny this. Wilson demanded a cut in royalties, and threatened to take his former band to court if need be.[6]
Just days after Wilson's departure, the band embarked on their first headlining tour through Europe, with long-time friend, Jon Walker, filling in for the summer tour as a temporary bassist while a permanent replacement was sought. All of the dates were sold out, with some, notably Manchester, selling out in a matter of hours. Upon their return, the band embarked on a two-month North American headlining tour with supporting acts The Hush Sound, OK Go, The Dresden Dolls, and Lucent Dossier Vaudeville Cirque, still retaining Walker as a temporary bassist. On July 3 of that year, the band's MySpace profile was edited to list Walker as bassist/vocals, and he became a permanent member of Panic! at the Disco.
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