It’s been three years since Panic! At The Disco has released an album. Since then the band has lost two of its original members, one of who was the band’s principle songwriter. Questions whether the two remaining members would be able to carry the weight on their newest release, Vices & Virtues, has been an outstanding question that has been left unanswered ever since, and Panic!’s first single doesn’t exactly help their cause.
 
“The Ballad Of Mona Lisa” sounds like anything but the material released off of Pretty. Odd., which most fans of the band will be happy about, but the track doesn’t quite live up to expectations. Keys that would sound at home on A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out are welcoming until Brendon Urie’s vocals kick in with a melody that does anything but excite.
 
The pre-chorus might be the bright spot of the song as it helps recover the track from a lackluster verse, but the song loses its steam once again in the chorus.
 
The chorus is catchy as can be, but it simply lacks substance. The lyrics, “Whoa, whoa, whoa Mona Lisa // I pay to see you frown” might be able to land the band a spot on the charts, but they better hope it will be able to hold the attention of their fans who have waited three years for songs of substance as well. If not, Ryan Ross may be missed after all.
 
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