Band History

The band formed in Las Vegas by schoolmates Ryan Ross on guitar and Spencer Smith on drums. They recruited fellow schoolmates Brent Wilson on bass and Brendon Urie on vocals and started jamming on songs. Their name was taken from a line in the song "Panic" by Name Taken.

After Pete Wentz from Fall Out Boy heard their material, he brought them to the attention of Fueled by Ramen Records, who signed them while they were still in high school to Wentz's imprint label Decaydance. They recorded their album in College Park, Maryland with producer Matt Squire who had earlier produced Thrice. The band split their 13 track album in two with tracks 1 through 8 featuring synthesisers and drum machines and tracks 9 through 13 using traditional instruments such as the accordian and a Vaudevillian piano.

The band's collective favorite author is Chuck Palahniuk. The tracks on their album that have references to his books are:

• The Only Difference Between Martydom and Suicide is Press Coverage (the title of this song is a line from Palahniuk's Survivor)
• Time To Dance (this entire song is based on Invisible Monsters)
• London Beckoned Songs about Money Written by Machines (the line "Just for the record, the weather today is slighty sarcastic with a good chance of..." is a reference to Palahniuk's Diary)

The band attracted considerable publicity in the leadup to the release of the album with Spin magazine naming them as their band of the day in early October 2005. The band has also increased in popularity due to their online presence with PureVolume having them consistently in their Top 10 signed band list and reaching #1 on the MySpace chart.

When their first album A Fever You Can't Sweat Out was released, it debuted on the US charts at #112 on the Billboard album charts with nearly 10,000 in first week sales. It also debuted at #6 on the Billboard independent chart and at #1 on the Billboard heatseeker chart. The band started its first North American tour supporting the Acceptance and other acts in September 2005

Band Members

As of 2005, Panic! at the Disco consists of:

• Ryan Ross (guitar and back-up vocals); age 19
• Spencer Smith (drums); age 18
• Brendon Urie (vocals and guitar); age 18
• Brent Wilson (bass); age 18

Discography

A Fever You Can't Sweat Out (2005)

1. Introduction
2. The Only Difference Between Martydom and Suicide is Press Coverage
3. London Beckoned Songs About Money Written By Machines
4. Nails For Breakfast, Tacks For Snacks
5. Camisado
6. Time To Dance
7. Lying is the Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off
8. Intermission
9. But It's Better If You Do
10. I Write Sins Not Tragedies
11. I Constantly Thank God For Esteban
12. There's A Good Reason These Tables Are Numbered Honey, You Just Haven't Thought Of It Yet
13. Build God, Then We'll Talk

External Links

• Myspace
• PureVolume
• Home Page
• Livejournal

Known Interviews

• bengarmisa.com

References

• Allmusic.com article on Panic! at the Disco

• Spin Band of the Day article

• Fueled by Ramen Panic! at the Disco site

• Panic! at the Disco web site

Footnotes

(1) Chart positions obtained from Allmusic.com as cited above. Sales figures from MTV News article [1].