Pray For The Wicked it feels as if they’ve finally managed to channel that frenetic, slightly chaotic attitude into a studio album that is at once eclectic and coherent.

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NME

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.

‘Pray for the Wicked’ takes the kid-in-a-sweet-shop feel of ‘Death of a Bachelor’ and ratchets it up to eleven.

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 ... it's hard to deny.

‘Pray For The Wicked' is a record of belief. It's about making wildest dreams a reality and then living within them. There's sadness in the victory, but resilience to what comes next.

Urie’s recent theatrical past adds even more drama to his musical output, as the new thirtysomething pontificates on the trappings of fame and the excesses of youth, laced with religious imagery and advice from his mom.

Granted, his sixth effort is as bonkers and creative as ever, but it could be that less really is more.

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.

7mo

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.

Pray for the Wicked is undeniably a modern pop record, but the lights of Broadway linger in these 11 brief songs.

A lot of the key problems I have with Panic! At the Disco’s music resurfaces here, and with the shallow approach to the music, sloppy style clashes and irritatingly generic lyrics that talk about success, following your dreams and getting drunk, it damages the final product exponentially.

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Docky

You know I don't think I've seen an album where I went from hating it to thinking it was actually good to slowly realizing it was just as bad as I thought at first.

As a Panic! at the Disco album this is nothing short of atrocious, the writing is all bland and feels extremely underwritten for a band like this and even worse, absolutely personality devoid. The songs sound way too similar to each other which is the opposite of every other Panic! album and the instrumentals do nothing but ... read more

7mo*

BuffaloStaple

My one half listen of this album from when it dropped still haunts me to this day.

itsyahboinoah

Hey mama, look I made a mediocre album.

Strangelightsyd

I know April 1st isn't over but Jesus Christ it just hurt. Back to its rightfully shitty rating it goes!

After relistening to this with an open mind and carefully analyzing every moment, I have realized that pftw not only surpasses all past panic! projects, but also surpasses every and all forms of music ever released. Brendon Urie, with his exquisite production and lyrical writing, creates possibly the greatest work of art the human race has ever been blessed with. There will never be another ... read more

2y*

morningsbell

The funniest thing about this album is that it's so overproduced, decorated with unnecessarily many layers of sound, yet its production quality sounds awful. Whoever mixed this album did a poor job bringing out Brendan's vocal, which actually has quite some potentials in delivery but is dragged down by the over-the-top bursts of choruses on this album.

The lyrics on this album are hilariously god-awful. Sounds like Brendan is trying to sound all sinister and cinematic yet fails miserably at ... read more

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