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Pray for the Wicked Image
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 9 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 233 Ratings

  • Summary: The sixth full-length release for Brendon Urie was written after his stint in Broadway's Kinky Boots and was produced by Jake Sinclair.
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Top Track

High Hopes
(Chorus) Had to have high high hopes for a living Shooting for the stars when I couldn't make a killing Didn't have a dime but I always had a... See the rest of the song lyrics
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 9
  2. Negative: 0 out of 9
  1. Jun 25, 2018
    80
    Admittedly, his embrace of slick pop aesthetics, Rat Pack swagger, and cheeky turns of phrase can be a bit much on first listen. But that being said, when it's backed with a strong hook and just a modicum of earnest emotion, as on the sanguine club jam "Hey Look Ma, I Made It," it's hard to deny.
  2. 80
    Pray For The Wicked is as sinfully good as anything Panic! have done before.
  3. 80
    The album was written immediately after Brendon’s recent stint in the Broadway musical ‘Kinky Boots’, and while it’s fair to say he’s always had a flair for theatrics, the experience has injected these tracks with unprecedented levels of sass and drama. Urie is clearly still relishing the role of the sonic bachelor, and it shows. On Pray, it sounds like he’s having a total blast.
  4. Jun 22, 2018
    60
    Urie undoubtedly knows how to put on an entertaining show, but this is a production that lacks the kind of intelligibility and depth necessary for real emotional engagement.
  5. Kerrang!
    Jun 27, 2018
    60
    It feels harsh to criticise a Panic! At The Disco record for being bold and exploring its brash nature to the fullest. ... But there's no getting around the fact this one feels like it could have done with a defter touch and some sonic restraint. [30 Jun 2018, p.53]
  6. Jun 22, 2018
    60
    Granted, his sixth effort is as bonkers and creative as ever, but it could be that less really is more.
  7. Jun 26, 2018
    50
    Between horns, strings, synths, guitars and all the rest this record is definitely an attack on the senses and shows Urie's knack for constructing a radio-friendly hit, but delve below the surface and it doesn't have much to offer. Certainly not enough to justify diminishing returns for a long running act, definitely not enough to keep me coming back for anything but the first few beats.

See all 9 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 50 out of 77
  2. Negative: 9 out of 77
  1. Feb 18, 2020
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. For me this is the best album of Panic! At The Disco. With the catchy tunes and the genre of alternative rock made this album cool and different. Three songs in this album that I love the most is : High Hopes, Say Amen and Dying In LA. Expand
  2. Aug 1, 2018
    10
    i feel that Brendon has put a lot of thought into this album and that he has tapped into his own life to write this album and that each songi feel that Brendon has put a lot of thought into this album and that he has tapped into his own life to write this album and that each song is one of his stories. i think that it is very lyrical and he has put a lot of thought into the album and that it means a lot to him. i think that there sound has changed a lot and that Brendon has matured with his lyrics and his writing style and just the music in general, but i feel this album is a big change and that it is a great album to listen to. Expand
  3. Jun 22, 2018
    10
    Pray For The Wicked is the perfect successor for the exhilarant, superb and grandiloquent Death of a Bachelor (and like its predecessor, itPray For The Wicked is the perfect successor for the exhilarant, superb and grandiloquent Death of a Bachelor (and like its predecessor, it shares the same adjectives). More danceable, with funk, Broadway and groovy influences, if you are ready to continue the awesome ride of brass sections mixed with Brendon majestic voice, then this is the album for you. Expand
  4. Apr 22, 2020
    8
    buenardo. los ritmos son asombrosos, brendon lo hizo muy bien con este álbum. no es el mejor de su discografía, pero está bien para serbuenardo. los ritmos son asombrosos, brendon lo hizo muy bien con este álbum. no es el mejor de su discografía, pero está bien para ser escuchado.
    canciones favoritas: say amen saturday night, roaring 20's
    canciones menos favoritas: dying in l.a.
    Expand
  5. Sep 2, 2020
    7
    me gusta que en este álbum tenga un concepto religioso, aunque no sea tanto. sin embargo, sento al álbum un poco flojo, pues algunas cancionesme gusta que en este álbum tenga un concepto religioso, aunque no sea tanto. sin embargo, sento al álbum un poco flojo, pues algunas canciones se parecen entre sí y es algo complicado distinguirlas, aún así creo que hay algunas canciones que salvan el álbum de no caer en la monotonía. mis canciones favoritas son king of the clouds, roaring 20s y say amen saturday night Expand
  6. Jun 22, 2018
    6
    It's a good album, not the best, not the worst. The instrumental in some of the songs and brendon voice are really good.
  7. Sep 6, 2019
    0
    The debut album of the solo pop artist Brendon Urie, including very hip and trendy songs such as High Hopes and Dancing's not a Crime. In allThe debut album of the solo pop artist Brendon Urie, including very hip and trendy songs such as High Hopes and Dancing's not a Crime. In all seriousness, this album doesn't even deserve a 1. All of his previous music is amazing, not only is it cynical in the perfect way, it was also a way of restoring your faith in the human populous. But this latest album is a massive black blot on a clean canvas. This album is so pop-y that it hurts my f***ing ears.The fact that High Hopes is counted as one of Panic!'s classics alongside Nine in the Afternoon, This is Gospel, Death of a Bachelor, and I Write Sins not Tragedies is utterly disgraceful. Panic!'s previous songs were beautifully written not only to sound good, but to convey a meaningful message. (By the way, High Hopes is literally lying, listen to it closely.) (F*** a) Silver Lining: This song gets old after listening to it twice. i have dozens of hours on A Fever You Can't Sweat Out. The reason why is because not only are all of the songs meaningful, they also sound bloody amazing. Songs need to be good enough to make you wanna hear them again, that's why artists like Trevor Something are so successful. Silver Lining is one of the only not-utterly-and-completely-abysmal songs in this album, and I can't stand hearing it more than twice a week. I hate hearing this song blasted on every pop radio station. As for the message, it's literally just about seeing the good in life,, how basic can you get? Say Amen (Saturday Night). The second best song due to it having a meaning and not sounding like s*** The song sounds fine, that's it. As for the meaning, it's a reflection on his mormon roots, it wasn't executed the best, but I'll take anything from this s*** album. Hey Look Ma, I Made It is abysmal. It's about what four other f***ing songs in this album are about and it sounds horrible. I do understand that there is an underlying message, that being corruption in the music industry, but their first song was about this and it was about four hundred times better. Roaring 20's: This song is just filled with missed potential. The lyrics are about Brendon's broadway experience, which is fine. I just think that the lyrics are dull and repetitive. I don't think people realize the potnetial Brendon Urie had when it comes to emulating the music of the 20's, the instruments and singing tone. This is only ever touched on in There's a Good Reason These Tables Are Numbered Honey, You Just Haven't Thought of it Yet and Crazy=Genius, two of my favourite songs by Panic!. But this is just a disappointment, the only exceptional thing about this is it's intro music. Dancing's not a Crime is a crime, this song is so bad it made me tear my own liver out. The music behind it is f***ing aids, it sound's like if Alvin and the Chipmunks tried beat-boxing. The lyrics are as basic b**** as it gets and the song's meaning it useless. Something Giorno Giovanna would not appreciate. One of the Drunks: Did anyone actually listen to this song? In case you didn't, all I'm gonna say is the same things I've been saying this whole review. It's boring, repetitive and meaningless. King of the Clouds: Just sounds like something you'd hear on the local pop station. Not special at all. The Overpass: The same as King of the Clouds. Old Fashioned: Again. this is like the EVOLVE (by Shinedown) of this album, I think I've heard it once. It is just bad though, bad and unimportant.. Dying in LA is what gave me hope, this is the Impossible Year of this album, but instead of being basically forgotten about, it's the only thing that you don't forget besides the fact that you can tell your mates about an album that almost gave you a cerebral hemorrhage Joseph Stalin style. This song actually sounds fine, and has something called, say it with me: Metaphor. Y'know, one of those things that making conversation and speaking actually interesting. This song is about the over-hyping of LA, which is actually an interesting topic! The song altogether, is fine, definitely the best of the album. High Hopes: I saved this one for last because of how much I despise it. The song is about the same thing as Hey look Ma, I Made it. Brendon's rise to stardom. But the way it's told makes it sound like he just recently hit it off, I'm pretty sure that 12-11 years ago wasn't all that recent. Also, "I've always had High High Hopes for the living." Then what is I Constantly Thank God for Estaban about, or Ballad of the Mona Lisa, or Build God Then We'll Talk? All of those songs and many many more are about how much humanity f***ing sucks and the stupid s*** that they do. It's also way to over-exposed. And it sounds terrible. The end. I hear supporters of this album say three things: Panic! is better at this kind of music, I've been waiting for this for so long, and change is a good thing. 1. They're not better at this kind of music, 2. Then go listen to some Taylor Swift, Fall Out Boy or Shawn Mendez. 3. Change is good if it works. Expand

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