Pray for the Wicked
by Panic! At the Disco
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 9 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 9
  3. Negative: 0 out of 9
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  1. AllMusic
    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. New Musical Express (NME)
    Jun 21, 2018
    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.
  3. The Independent (UK)
    Jun 21, 2018
    80
    Pray For The Wicked is as sinfully good as anything Panic! have done before.
  5. The A.V. Club
    Jun 29, 2018
    67
    The poignant album-ending ballad “Dying In LA” makes you wish there had been more tracks showcasing Urie’s pop-transcending emotive vocals.
  6. 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]
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  7. DIY Magazine
    Jun 22, 2018
    60
    Granted, his sixth effort is as bonkers and creative as ever, but it could be that less really is more.
  8. The Guardian
    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.
  9. Q Magazine
    Jun 21, 2018
    60
    It's breathless and occasionally shallow, but never less than entertaining. [Summer 2018, p.114]
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  10. The 405
    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.

Awards & Rankings

24
#24 Most Discussed Album of 2018
20
#20 Most Shared Album of 2018

User Reviews

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User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 233 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 180 out of 233
  2. Mixed: 34 out of 233
  3. Negative: 19 out of 233
  1. Guzaman
    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.… Full Review »
  2. neverusingthis
    Jun 22, 2018
    3
    As day one fan since 2005, I am utterly disappointed.
    It seems Brendon Urie has finally reached a level of success where the only thing he    As day one fan since 2005, I am utterly disappointed.
    It seems Brendon Urie has finally reached a level of success where the only thing he knows how to write about is how successful he's become, how he's still unfulfilled despite his decadent LA lifestyle, and how no amount of drinking can fix that but **** it let's do it anyway. And all but two tracks sound like the standard Top 40 white noise you hear on the radio. Any traces of their emo roots have been thoroughly bleached out in favor of overproduced pop numbers with a very misutilized horn section.
    I am glad for Brendon's success. After all these years, he deserves it. But it came at the cost of completely losing touch with why fans loved his music in the first place (I have to wonder if Death of a Bachelor would have been just as tepid without the influence of Rivers Cuomo). I suppose this is the inevitable progression for someone in his position, but in regards to quality, maybe he would have been better off taking a cue from My Chemical Romance and dissolving the band when his musical style had evolved past its usefulness.
    Other negative reviews have better broken down what is wrong from a technical standpoint and I wholeheartedly concur. I had high hopes for my favorite band, and I was praying for a good release, but it turns out Panic! is one fever I /can/ sweat out. It just took 13 years.    … Full Review »
  3. DarkTitan9174
    Jun 22, 2018
    5
    Panic! are band that I currently have a somewhat difficult relationship with. I would say that their best album is probably Pretty Odd,Panic! are band that I currently have a somewhat difficult relationship with. I would say that their best album is probably Pretty Odd, because to some extent it lives up to its title, especially considering how much it deviated from Fever. Vices had great instrumentation but kind of poor lyrics. Too Weird To Live and Death of a Bachelor have both been fun, but are lacking that real tangible depth - yet I still find myself coming back to quite a few of the songs off of them. However, after the departure of a high amount of members and resulting in Brendon Urie effectively becoming Panic! at the Disco, a very clear new sound was emerging, seeds of which were sown into Bachelor. I feel this has now cultivated in Pray For The Wicked, Panic!'s sixth album that almost completely abandons Panic!'s roots and essentially makes a Brendon Urie pop album. I don't necessarily think that this is a bad thing - pop albums can be good, given it has a heart. However, I just don't feel there's a whole lot of heart to any aspect of Pray For The Wicked.

    To start with the positives, songs are typically catchy. Brendon is always such a performer, and some songs like Say Amen, King of the Clouds, The Overpass and **** A) Silver Lining have a good sense of grandeur without sacrificing heart. However, it's this seeming emphasis on grandeur and bombastic sounding production that is to the album's detriment, likely a result of Brendon's time in Broadway. Though they may sound like they're out of a musical, they might be out of an average musical.

    Some songs made my face actually sort of scrunch up, considering what the hell I was listening to in the context of a band that had built themselves off of punk pop rock and at least instrumentation. 2018's trapscape seeps even into this album, and some of the performances here are semi-questionable.

    Pray For The Wicked is not necessarily bad. It's just painfully average and just lacks any real heart to it. It feels hollow. An album that seems to try to please everyone seems to ultimately please no one.    … Full Review »
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