Too much Panic!, not enough Disco: A thorough timeline of the incredibly messy and recently disbanded emo band

It was a calm, typical, Tuesday morning. As a former emo kid, okay, maybe current emo kid, I was riding high on recent Paramore and Fall Out Boy releases. While eating breakfast, I come across a post from Panic! at the Disco’s official account. It’s a big block of text. I’m internet savvy enough to know this isn’t a good sign. Nonetheless, I read on, and to my shock, I learn that Panic! at the Disco was (finally) breaking up after almost 20 years.

Through the textpost, Brendon Urie, the only remaining member of the band, detailed the disbandment. Citing the upcoming birth of his baby (that was subsequently spoiled by Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz), Urie officially brought the band to a close. “That said, I am going to bring this chapter of my life to an end and put my focus and energy on my family, and with that Panic! At The Disco will be no more.” He wrote in the post on Tuesday morning. “Thank you all for your immense support over the years. I’ve sat here trying to come up with the perfect way to say this and I truly can’t put into words how much it has meant to us.”

In those few minutes of waking up, I probably had ten people send it to me, including my mother. I had accidentally branded myself as the former emo kid over the last few years, and now people were checking in on me like the queen had died. But I, along with many other fans, remained unaffected. For me, Panic! at the Disco had broken up in 2009, and everything since has been like watching a sad, old dog limp to it’s grave.

To really understand the current “breakup” situation, you have to be versed on the start of the band. In 2004, high schooler Ryan Ross formed the Summer League, sans Brendon Urie, which later formed into Panic! at the Disco. It wasn’t until they were looking for another guitarist that Urie entered, slowly morphing into their lead singer due to his admittedly impressive (and usually grating) vocals. Wanting to do something more unique than the metal stuff they were always hearing in their hometown of Las Vegas, Ross and Urie, along with other members Spencer Smith and Brent Wilson, took a step in a new direction, ultimately forming Panic.

From there, they began recording demos and posting them on MySpace, deciding to make the internet their stage due to the lackluster music scene around them. From there, they started getting attention from the emo and scene subcultures of the website, taking Panic! from a garage band in a Nevada to a group that was being swapped around iPods across the nation. However, it was second demo of Time to Dance, that ended up grabbing the attention of the most famous emo of them all: Fall Out Boy frontman Pete Wentz. From there, Wentz started messaging with the band, building a relationship, with him eventually visiting one of their band practices. He instantly signed Panic! to his record label, Decaydance Records, which would later go on to sign Cobra Starship, The Academy is…, and Gym Class Heroes.

After that, Panic! At the Disco exploded in popularity, going from a niche band beloved by MySpace kids, to reaching number seven on the Billboard Top 40 with their single “I Write Sins Not Tragedies.” Soon after, they released their first album, “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out,” a record that is still considered by most to be their best, with expert mixing with sharp, cutting lyrics written by Ross and performed by Urie. Within less than a year, Panic! Was walking red carpets, performing at the VMAs, and on a constant touring schedule.

Somewhere in the media storm, Brent Wilson, original bassist and one of the founding members, was asked to leave the band “after not keeping up with the bands standards,” marking him as the first band member to leave the band. Jon Walker picked up where he left off, replacing him as bassist, and continuing on their extensive tour. However, this was only a looming sign of what was to come.

After embarking on the “Nothing Rhymes with Circus” tour, Panic! went on to release the Beatles-esque “Pretty. Odd.” in 2008, which divided fans and critiques alike. While Spin called the album “optimistically beautiful,” Panic’s! emo fanbase missed the edginess that was traded out for cartoon-y flowers and costumes. Nonetheless, they still went back on tour, continuing as normal, only growing bigger than before. 

It wasn’t until 2009 that things started going downhill for the band. After attempting to record their third album, all four members were unable to find a compromise in sound, with frontman/singer Brendon Urie wanting to cultivate a pop sound, and guitarist Ryan Ross wanting to continue with vintage-rock. The differences were inconsolable, and a few months later, the band split, with Jon Walker leaving with Ross to make more Beatles-inspired music, and Urie sticking with Spencer Smith. 

During the split, Ross was under the impression that Urie would discontinue Panic! at the Disco, and go on making music under a new name, as Ross had originally created the band. However, this (obviously) didn’t end up happening, and Urie began recording the third studio album, “Vices and Virtues,” under Panic!’s moniker. 

Without Ross’ songwriting talents, Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy (also head of Panic!’s record label) stepped in to supervise writing, getting credit on multiple songs and a “inspiration” thank you, (although no one knows what this means still). Controversially, Ross’ songs were still used on the album, despite no longer being apart of the band. 

When the album was finished recording, Dallon Weekes, frontman of indie rock band The Brobecks, was asked to join the band’s official lineup, making Panic! into a three piece band. Although he didn’t play on “Vices and Virtues”, he was responsible for the album’s visual concept, planning the cover and it’s subsequent art, initialing his first of many later contributions for Panic! at the Disco.

Musician Ian Crawford was also asked to join the band during the “Vices” era, although he left after the first tour, citing his want to make “genuine, real music.” (Yikes). 

The next album, “Too Weird To Live, Too Rare to Die”, began recording in 2013, with Urie, Weekes and Smith all collaborating to create an album that aimed to embody the gaudiness and mystery of Las Vegas. It was released later that year, and the band set out on their next tour, only for Spencer Smith, the band’s original drummer, to leave after the first few dates to “continue fighting addiction.” After his departure, he was replaced with Dan Pawlovich, who would go on to take his place on tours after Smith’s official resignment from the band. 

After the release of “Too Weird,” Dallon Weekes was asked to step back creatively, thereby demoting him to a touring position. Now he would not be asked to contribute to music, rather just joining on tours. No reason was ever stated for this decision. 

From here, Urie was unsure if the next one-man project was going to continue with the Panic! name, and toyed with the idea of a single career. However, in 2015, he dropped the single “Hallejuah” under Panic! At the Disco, subsequently debuting at Number 40 on the Billboard chart, the band’s highest position at the time after “I Write Sins.” One year later, Death of a Bachelor, Panic!’s fifth studio album, and first solely under Urie, was released to generally favorable reviews. (In my opinion, however, it very much reads as Urie’s first project, giving it very misguided and “wife guy” feel). 

The album and tour cycle continued on as normal, with the band recruiting yet another member, Kenneth Harris, to play during tours. The touring lineup of Brendon Urie, Dallon Weekes, Kenneth Harris and Dan Pawlovich continued on for the next two years, with only Urie making creative and musical decisions.

“Pray for the Wicked”, Panic’s! Sixth album, began recording in 2017, with the controversial era officially kicking off with a performance in 2018 featuring new bassist Nicole Row, who was replacing Dallon Weekes completely. After the show, Weekes posted on his Instagram, confirming his departure from the band. “I’m grateful for the chance I’ve had to be part of Panic! At The Disco for nearly a decade,” he said in the post. “I will always consider myself indebted to those who made me feel welcome to be a part of
P!ATD. You changed my life. Thank you all.”

Although Weekes had only hinted towards conflict with Urie in the past, he has recently started speaking out since the public disbandment of the band. After the news was posted on Instagram, Weekes began editing captions of Instagram posts, claiming that Urie shot Weekes on stage with a pellet gun, and needed to “pretend it was funny so (he) could keep his job.” Another edited post depicts a sparkly suit jacket, with the caption reading “believe it or not, this jacket caused a fist fight.”

Breezy Weekes, Dallon Weekes’ wife, has also detailed her negative experience with her time around the band, posting about the aforementioned  “near-physical altercation” over a jacket, along with the sexual harassment she faced from Urie’s bodyguard Zack Cloud Hall. In 2020, Urie apologized over Twitch stream, but still claimed Hall was “still his friend.” 

Also during the “Pray for the Wicked” album rollout, Kenneth Harris, touring guitarist, was asked to leave the band after sexual misconduct allegations. 

Despite both the controversy with Weekes and Harris, Urie was still able to gain one more band member, guitarist Mike Naran, joining the line-up of Dan Pawlovich, Nicole Row and of course, Brendon Urie himself. Although everyone but Urie was only a “touring member,” they were still advertised as members of the band in both music videos, social media posts and promotionals.

“Pray for the Wicked,” the album during this era, was largely inspired by Urie’s time on Broadway, for better, or in my opinion, worse. It’s big in the worst way possible, and perhaps it’s biggest offense is that boasts one of the biggest crimes to humanity: High Hopes, a song so annoying, it belongs in every unskippable Youtube ad until the end of time. But despite it’s ear-bleeding qualities, it quickly became Panic!’s most successful song ever, breaking the record for the most time spent at the top of the Billboard Rock chart, at an insane 31 weeks. It also charted at Number Four on the overall Billboard charts, beating out their debut song, “I Write Sins Not Tragedies.”

Panic! At the Disco’s last album, Viva Las Vengeance, was released in late 2022, and despite it (somehow) getting generally favorable reviews, it failed to gain much recognition from former fans or radio waves. No songs from the album charted on Billboard, a far-cry from the mega-successful “High Hopes” that sprung from “Pray for the Wicked.” 

As normal, they embarked on what would be their final tour, which ended up going viral for its low attendance, along with its insane set list, which consisted of playing the entire new album from front to back, sandwiched between a few classics. (Author’s note: I went to this tour because I had a gut feeling it would be the last chance to see my favorite band from middle school. Turns out, I was right, but that doesn’t make the show any better in retrospect. The crowd was completely dead, and I was stuck between an even divide of thirteen year old girls and older millennials with P!ATD tattoos, both equally bored with the performance. The most riveting part of the show was when an old man told me that Brendon Urie was the next David Bowie and I felt like I was being waterboarded).

The Viva Las Vengeance tour ended in October, marking the end of Panic!’s performances in the United States. It was radio silence for a few months after that, with the first statement in a while being the breakup post. Although there’s still the Europe and the UK tour in the spring of this year, Panic! at the Disco will cease to exist after the last date in March.

As of now, the only past member of Panic! who’s spoken on the matter has been Jon Walker, the bass player from 2006-2009. Although the original caption (bizarrely) had 2019 as the ending date, it now reads “RIP PATD 2004-2023,” a sweet gesture to something that once was a sore point.

Currently, all other former members, Ryan Ross, Spencer Smith, Brent Wilson and Dallon Weekes, have not commented on the “break up,” with only Walker’s post and the official Panic! account speaking on the matter. The lack of explanation, of course, has only led to a social media frenzy, allowing fans (and former fans) to rehash the drama and events of the last twenty years, from the good to the bad.

As a fan, the ending to the band has been drawn out for the last several years, dragging by since the original split in 2009. But for the last few years, at the very least, it’s been like watching a car crash with Brendon Urie at the wheel. And honestly, who could ask for more?

Thank you Panic! At the Disco, for four years of good music, and fifteen years of “High, High Hopes.”