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| Pretty. Odd. | 
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| Artist: Panic At The Disco
Label: Fueled By Ramen
Category: Music
List Price: $18.98
Buy New: $7.88
You Save: $11.10 (58%)
New (24) Used (19) Collectible (1) from $7.88
Avg. Customer Rating:  183 reviews
Sales Rank: 733
Format: Enhanced
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 4.9 x 0.4
MPN: 430524
UPC: 075678995088
EAN: 0075678995088
ASIN: B00132D808
Release Date: March 25, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Fitting that they removed the ! from their name. March 25, 2008
10 out of 20 found this review helpful
Let me start off by saying this album is good, but... it sounds just like every other group out right now.
They sound like a cross between the old Panic! and the Beatles. I wouldn't be so disappointed with this album had Panic! at the Disco not developed their own distinct sound previously. Their old sound was so refreshing to hear compared to all the other bands at the time. I still listen to their last cd. Their original sound is why most people the cd immediately after it was released.
I have plenty other groups like Andrew Bird, The Honorary Title and Melee etc. that sound great and yet don't really have any songs that you can turn up loud in your car, when you are rolling with the sunroof open and the windows down.
If you don't believe me about the sound, then click on all the sound clips offered here on Amazon. It is a perfect snapshot of what you get: Good, but never intense... I mean never.
In all honesty they replaced their exclamation point from their name and added violins, brass and other instruments, while slowing down the tempo.
No cuss words, no hooks, no great lyrics, no "panic" to their pace!
Was the studio under water? Were they on Valium?
Give these guys their drugs, or speed, or whatever they were on when they rocked, back!
 it's Pretty Odd March 28, 2008
10 out of 14 found this review helpful
and will probably take a few more listens for me to really get the gist of their new release. But i can't compare it to their last cd, because its not the same. They aren't the same artists or writers as when "A Fever.." was released. Different life experiences and other things i am sure influenced Pretty. Odd. While it hasnt totally taken hold of me and shoke me up. I know that i'm already liking a few songs on this including "Nine in the Afternoon" and "Just Folkin Around". Give the cd a chance it's a departure from their previous work but i didnt look for this one to be like that.
So do the same and just listen to this cd as a first effort from the Panic At The Disco guys and go from their. i think you'll enjoy a bit more, maybe or maybe not. But give Pretty. Odd. a chance at the very least.
 Pretty.Good. April 19, 2008
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
I loved Panic at the disco's debut album, the million selling "A fever you can't sweat out" and was really thrilled when I finally got its follow up. "Pretty. Odd." is quite different from its more energetic electronic/Punk predecessor, featuring sunny harmonies, loads of horns and a retro sound reminiscent in parts of The Beach Boys or the Beatles. The band stated that they wanted a classic rock sound and that's what it sure sounds like.
The mood for the most part is mellow. Lead-off single "Nine in the afternoon" is a bouncy horn sprinkled song with sunny harmonies and quirky time changes. "Do you know what I'm seeing" is an upbeat string-swathed song with accordion flourishes. "I have friends in holy spaces" is a Lo-Fi jazzy acoustic piece with lots of horns. "When the day met the night" has a sunny surf sound, peppered with horns and tinkling pianos.
"Pas de cheval" has a galloping feel with nice harmonies and fleeting horns. Melancholic and Beatles-esque is the ballad "Behind the sea" with a slight marching drum beat, and an upbeat sing-along coda. "Folkin' around" is a fiddle filled country song, while "She had the world" is a melodic acoustic/violin festooned ballad with sixties sounding vocals/harmonies. I love it! Similar but with a slightly faster tempo is "From a mountain in the middle of the cabins".
"Mad as rabbits" is a sunny upbeat pop rocker, but my favourite song is "That green gentleman (Things have changed)". This is a bouncy song with a catchy chorus, retro sounding guitars, ELO-style harmonies and lyrics that reference the album title.
Most of the song titles are apparently lines appearing in the songs themselves. The album has a slight oddball pop feel similar to the sound of say The Smiths, and it did take a bit to grow on me but you know what, it's Pretty.Good.
 Very Disappointed March 28, 2008
8 out of 24 found this review helpful
I LOVED their first album. I am literally writing these notes as I listen to this new album for the first time ever. I will rate it as I hear it. I hope my buying this album without having heard any of it, based solely on the strength of their last album, won't end up burning me.
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Track Number.) rating out of/5. Notes.
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01.) 3/5. Cute opening, catchy, poppy.
02.) 4/5. Their best song on the whole album. Catchy, is lead into from the first track. This song sounds very close to the sound of their old album. I have a feeling it may end up being their first single, if it isn't already.
03.) 2/5. Not digging this one. Slow start, crooning. Decent melody though.
04.) 3/5. Meh. Slow start, good melody, nice lyrics, but a little too ... meh ... 1 minute into it, it picks up slightly, but it is still kind of ... meh. 1:30 into it, it starts sounding more like their older stuff, which is better, finishes stronger.
05.) 4/5. Starting out very good, fast paced, good melody, catchy lyrics. So far my favorite, besides #2, which was pretty good too, ends strong.
06.) 1/5. Gah, they are doing something weird with this one. Twangy ukulele intro, and scratchy/radio sounding vocals, like an old recording. Not liking this one at all so far. 1 minute in to this 2 minute "song" and it hasn't changed from the intro, so I guess this is the whole "song." Worst one on the album so far. Maybe it was meant to be like an 'act break' or something?
07.) 2/5. Slow guitar intro. Unaccompanied vocal intro. Decent, but not really rockin'. Okay, accompaniment has started in, I think they are building up to something. 1 minute in, a duet has started -- not great -- not objectionable, 1:30 in, and drums and backup guitar have started. Song is kind of stuck half way between a build up. 2:30 into the song now, it hasn't changed pace yet, or completed the build up.
08.) 3/5. Slow violin start, guitars adding in. Building up, cello added in now, vocals started. Gah, they are slow again, okay, the pace is picking up, the back tempo is very good paced, the vocals are matching. Horns added now. Building up to something great, it sounds like. Hitting the chorus now, seems pretty good. 2 minutes in now, not bad
09.) 3/5. Good start, fast paced, interesting lyrics, simple song. Not bad.
10.) 1/5. Slow start, flutes, melancholy. I am starting to regret buying the whole album on the strength of the last album. Their most popular song on their last album was track #10, "I Write Sins Not Tragedies." That song was fast paced, catchy, and poppy. So far, we are 10 songs into this album, and none of the songs have even approached that level of a song. This song, #10 on the new album, "The Piano Knows Something I Don't Know," is a simple, and grating song.
11.) 1/5. Slow, Beatles like (think yellow Submarine). hate it.
12.) 2/5. Country like, twangy, plain vocals. Neither good nor bad
13.) 2/5. Slow start, okay lyrics, okay vocals. Pace never picks up, sort of a Irish song with a blend of old court type music, like something that sounds like a harpsichord? Bleh.
14.) 1/5. Sounds like county fair/circus performance music. Okay vocals, okay melody. Slow, plodding, there is even whistling in this song. Gah, what the hell were they thinking with this album?! None of the songs so far have come even CLOSE to the brilliance of "I Write Sins Not Tragedies."
15.) 3/5. Last song. Good beat, okay vocals, okay supporting guitar (and tambourine for no reason), drums added in now. They are clearly going for a very Beatles-like sound in this album, that much is clear. Now there is a melody back-up voice backup on the chorus. The beat is still pretty good, but not catchy. This song reminds me of songs from the 1960's/70's middle period. You can't not make the comparison to the Beatles. Not great, but not bad.
And there you have it, not a single 5 star song on the entire album. How disappointing. Overall, i rate the whole album 2.5 stars, if that. There were a few 3 star songs, but mostly 2-ish songs, with a few 1 star songs. I will not buy the next Panic album, without listening to it first. How disappointing. I hate it when bands do this.
Pretty Amazing March 25, 2008
7 out of 11 found this review helpful
"Pretty. Odd." represents a quantum leap forward for Panic at the Disco. Not unlike the Rolling Stones did with "Their Satanic Majesty's Request," Panic has attempted to emulate The Beatles' classic "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," and in doing so has delivered a shimmering collection of orchestral pop gems. Like the Stones' album, though, "Pretty. Odd." already has a legion of detractors who apparently wanted a retread of Panic's first album. But to the band's immense credit, they not only have the musical chops to pull off the album, but they have the balls to deliver it to a fanbase who are likely to dismiss it. Nothing out right now sounds like this -- their chart topping peers lack the sophisticated orchestration and production, and the lesser known artists aping the styles of The Beatles and ELO often lack the sheer energy that infuses those classic records.
If you don't like Panic, this is the album that will change your mind. If you do, listen with an open mind and you'll realize that Pete Wentz's proteges have the potential to be the most unexpectedly great band of the year.
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