Yes, I was so far. Sooooo far from the stage. Don't talk to me about it. Nevertheless, my Panic! at the Disco Live in Manila experience was pretty awesome. Solid. Grabe si Brendon.
My friends and I are trying to save every cent we can for our upcoming trip in November, and the announcement of Panic's concert in Manila was met with a lot of "Are you fucking sure???" and "I'm not prepared! What do we do?" We couldn't care less about the other bands performing for In The Mix 2016 (it was sort of a festival). The answer was, "Yes" and "Of course, we go. Even with the cheapest ticket available."
As can be gleaned from this blog, I am a huge P!ATD fan, and it pained me to be this far away from the stage when I've waited 10 years to see them live. But, well, we deal, we deal.
Like one huge party with Brendon as the star, the concert was a roller-coaster ride of grooving to the beats, being awestruck by Brendon's talent (there seems to be nothing that this guy can't do), fist-pumping, and getting big-time nostalgic about Fever... and Pretty. Odd. songs.
Almost every period in my recent past had me going to PATD for comfort and inspiration. 2006, we were in high school, angsty as hell, sporting eyeliners and being so young, desperate for attention.
2009, I was lost in college, always the loner and struggling with belonging, finding good vibes and keeping the company of that green gentleman.
2011, I was so all over the place, so busy with acads and work and social life, and everything was just bittersweet at 21.
2014, I was making myself believe that I was already an adult, able to figure things out, but there will always be that fear of falling apart.
And now, 2016, crossing the quarter-life and feeling like life should be a celebration instead of preempting the regrets of my youth. :))
PATD is so important to me, whether pre-Ryan's exit or the current one with just Brendon. Always (heh), I am amazed by the artistry of their lyrics and their genre-defying (triphop cabaret dance punk, heh) sounds. Panic makes me feel that being imperfect and making all these mistakes are okay, that the world is awesome with the right mindset. That it's fine to revel in human nature and all its accompanying oddities. That shit happens, but life goes on. (And that Urie is just so fucking talented, and amazing to watch and listen to.)
I would like to specially mention Golden Days, because like the girl behind the camera of this video, I actually felt my heart skip a beat when I realized that this song was about to be played.
Aside from the obvious ones in Death of A Bachelor, Golden Days is my favorite in the entire album. So poignant and, well, relatable. And just a great, beautiful song: Oh don't you wonder when the light begins to fade? / And the clock just makes the colors turn to gray. When I first heard that song, I was like, GOD. DAMN.
It was a surreal and fun and crazy evening. Brendon sure knows how to work up a crowd. And he's just so insanely talented. (Have I said that yet?)
Setlist: Panic! At The Disco Live in Manila
Setlist: Panic! At The Disco Live in Manila
