Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die!

Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! is the fourth studio album by American pop rock band Panic! at the Disco. The album was released on October 8, 2013 on Decaydance and Fueled by Ramen. Recorded as a trio, the album was produced by Butch Walker, and is the only album to feature bassist Dallon Weekes since he officially joined the band in 2010. This was also the final album to feature drummer Spencer Smith, thus making this Panic!'s final album as a rock band, with further releases being made as a solo project fronted by Brendon Urie.
Described as a "party record", Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! was preceded by the singles "Miss Jackson" and "This Is Gospel", with "Girls / Girls / Boys" and Nicotine EP following after its release. The album's overall aesthetic is influenced by dance music, electronica and hip hop.
Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, earning the band their second career number two after Pretty. Odd. (2008). The song "Vegas Lights" would later be used as the Vegas Golden Knights' goal song.
Writing and composition
Musically, Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! is inspired by hip hop in that "there are no rules". In an extension of that mantra, the album is an eclectic affair that varies wildly from song to song. Other inspirations for the album were drawn from electronic composers such as Kraftwerk, and Wendy Carlos (composer of the soundtrack of Tron and A Clockwork Orange). The album's sound has been described as pop, dance-pop, synth-pop, electropop, indie rock, alternative rock, pop rock, and emo.
Name origin
The name of the album was lifted from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, a book based on a Gonzo Journalism account of author Hunter S. Thompson’s trip to Las Vegas to cover the Mint 400 - a desert race held yearly just outside Las Vegas. It was also a 1998 film directed by Terry Gilliam featuring Johnny Depp. It is a reference to the central idea of the album, which was inspired by lead singer Brendon Urie, and drummer Spencer Smith's home city of Las Vegas.
Lyrics
Urie's lyrical contributions to Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! were further inspired by the band's city. Prior to the album's release, he noted: "When we did our first record, we were really bitter toward the whole Vegas scene. We weren't old enough to experience all of what Vegas is really known for. Even the shows, most of them were twenty-one and over. There was a lot of hostility, but over the past couple years, I’ve started to get rid of that cynicism and see it in a new light [...] I wanted to celebrate it." He penned much of the album's lyrics in the city itself: "There's some glitz, some glamour, but there's also the dingy, old Vegas side to the music."
The record's lyrics are very personal in nature. The first track, "This is Gospel" (written by Urie and bassist Dallon Weekes), talks about Spencer's drug addiction. The original demo sat on Urie's laptop for months before he finally shared it with the rest of the band. The album's lead single, "Miss Jackson", was written about Urie's first sexual experiences during his youth. "When I was younger, I would mess around; I'd sleep with one girl one night, sleep with her friend the next night, and not care about how they felt, or how I made them feel. And then it happened to me, and I realized 'Wow, that's what that feels like? I feel really shitty.'" A hidden preview of "Vegas Lights" was featured in the announcement video of Fall Out Boy's Save Rock and Roll fall arena tour. "Vegas Lights" was intended as an anthem for carefree nights in Las Vegas, that most prominently reflected how Urie felt clubbing. "I felt this weird energy where everybody was having a good time, and it didn't matter," he remarked. "Dancing like nobody's watching. It was kind of beautiful.". The song also uses a sample from "Number 5" (a song used on Sesame Street in the 1970s) at the beginning of the song. "Girl That You Love" was originally written in French following a five-day vacation in France. Bassist Dallon Weekes, who also performed lyrical duties for the album, later penned the English lyrics for the song based on Urie's French demo.
The album's third single, "Girls / Girls / Boys", has been described by Dallon Weekes as being centered on a love triangle complicated by differing sexual orientations. When commented on about the video for "Girls / Girls / Boys", lead singer Brendon Urie said "It's inspired by D'Angelo's 'Untitled (How Does It Feel)' video."
The YouTube release of "Casual Affair" samples the quote "Looks innocent enough, doesn't it? But sometimes there are dangers involved that never meet the eye. No matter where you meet a stranger, be careful if they are too friendly" taken from the 1961 public domain anti-gay film Boys Beware. This quote is not present in the official album release.
"The End of All Things" was written about Urie's wife Sarah Urie, and is written as Urie's vows in their wedding. The song was written two days before they got married.
Promotion
In August 2012, the band's last tour cycle, it was announced during a show that a new album was in the works. Soon, pictures of the band busy in the studio were posted on the band's Tumblr, Facebook, and Instagram. On July 15, 2013 the band announced Too Weird To Live, Too Rare to Die! for a release date of October 8 as an addition a new single "Miss Jackson" and music video. On July 18, 2013 a small tour was announced to support the album with New Politics opening for them, starting on August 1, 2013, and ending August 22, 2013. It was also announced that they would go on the Save Rock and Roll tour with Fall Out Boy. In support of the album release, On October 11, 2013, the band played a release show in Las Vegas at the Cosmo Pool. On October 14, 2013, 6 days after the album was released, the band announced a Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! tour, starting on January 14, 2014, and ending on February 16, 2014. The band continued to tour until May 13, 2014, and announced a new tour, titled, The Gospel Tour beginning on July 18, 2014, and ending August 31, 2014.
Artwork
The album's cover art features a black and white photograph of vocalist and guitarist Brendon Urie smoking a cigarette emitting rainbow-colored fumes. Drummer Spencer Smith and bassist Dallon Weekes appear in photographs within the album's supplemental artwork. Regarding the decision to feature a photograph of himself on the cover, Urie noted, "I love being the center of attention, I'm shameless about it. And being the lead singer, everyone thought it made sense, for me to be front and center. It felt right, since I was so close to these songs." In another interview, Urie said "[the album] really was just about times I had growing up in Vegas. I wanted to create that character. The person I am on the cover is not who I am. Even the smoking cigarettes — I’ve quit since then. But when I was a kid, that was the guy who ran around Vegas and owned it. He had a Liberace jacket and he was smoking a cigarette. He was owning the desert, he didn’t give a fuck, and the smoke was colored — that to me was the quintessential Vegas guy."
Commercial performance
In the United States, the album made its debut on the Billboard 200 at number 2, on the chart issue dated October 26, 2013, selling 84,000 copies. In its second week of selling, the album fell 17 spots, from number 2, to 19. After 108 weeks of charting on the Billboard 200, the album fell off.
The Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League have used one of the songs from the album, "Vegas Lights," as their goal song since the team's debut in 2017.
Critical reception
Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! received generally positive reviews from music critics. On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 from reviews from critics, the album received a 72 based on 8 reviews.
In a positive review, Matt Collar of AllMusic praised the album's exploration of different genres. In another positive review, Eric Allen of American Songwriter stated that while the album seems to be extremely dissimilar in the first listen, Brendon Urie's personal lyrics thematically tie them all together. In a mixed review, Jordan Blum of PopMatters wrote that the album felt like a continuation of Vices & Virtues and came off as obnoxious, generic, and too uninvolving to listen to.
Track listing
All lyrics written By Brendon Urie and Dallon Weekes; except where noted.
Personnel
Panic! at the Disco
Brendon Urie – lead vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards, synthesizers, vocoder
Dallon Weekes – bass guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, synthesizers, baritone guitar
Spencer Smith – drums, percussion, drum machine, electronic percussion
Additional musicians
Butch Walker – guitar, bass guitar, production, backing vocals
Rob Mathes – string arrangements, conductor
Lolo – additional vocals on "Miss Jackson"
Julian Leaper – concertmaster
Emlyn Singleton – violin (leader)
Peter Lale – viola (leader)
Dave Daniels – cello (leader)
Recording personnel
Jake Sinclair – engineer, mixing
Todd Stopera – assistant engineer
Amir Salem – additional engineering
Jonathan Allen – strings recording
Chris Barrett – strings recording assistant
Ted Jensen – mastering
Artwork
Alex R. Kirzhner – creative direction, photography and design
Panic! at the Disco – creative direction
Chris Phelps – additional photos
Anthony Franco – styling
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
References
External links
Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)
Panic! at the Disco albums
2013 albums
Fueled by Ramen albums
Albums produced by Butch Walker