Panic at the Disco
PATD (formerly known as Panic! at the Disco) is a rock band that originated in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Their 2005 debut album, A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out, reached #13 on the US Billboard 200, and has sold over 2.2 million copies[4] since its September 2005 release. The band’s second album, Pretty. Odd., was released on March 25, 2008 and debuted at #2 in the US.
The band was formed in the suburban area of Summerlin, Las Vegas, by two childhood friends—Ryan Ross on the guitar and Spencer Smith on the drums. Since the age of thirteen, the two played Blink-182 covers in bands of different formations, according to an interview with Walker and Ross. Ross and Smith then created a band under the name of “Summer League” with childhood friends Brent Wilson, and Trevor who would later leave the band.
It was at Palo Verde High School where Wilson met Brendon Urie. Wilson had asked Urie to try out as guitarist for the fledgling band, as they were looking for a replacement guitarist at the time. Originally, Urie was not the band’s lead singer or their guitarist. Rather, the position belonged to current guitarist and lyricist Ross. However, when they heard him sing backup vocals during a rehearsal, they were impressed with his backup vocal abilities and unanimously decided to make him the singer. The band then settled on the name ‘Panic! at the Disco.’ They lifted the name from the lyrics of a song called “Panic,” by Name Taken: Panic at the disco / Sat back and took it so slow / Are you nervous? Are you shaking? / Save compliments to praise compilation / We don’t have to feel we fit in / We can move back / We can leave them.[5] Although the band often says that the name comes from the song Panic by The Smiths, it was revealed by them that the Name Taken song did also lend inspiration to the band, but that the song by The Smiths is sometimes easier to explain to the ones who are unaware of Name Taken.[citation needed]
In order to promote music, the band contacted Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz through LiveJournal, and sent him an internet link to their PureVolume site. Wentz took a trip to Las Vegas to meet the band. After seeing them practice, he asked if they would sign with his Fueled by Ramen imprint label Decaydance.
