A Fever You Can't Sweat Out. The fourth best studio album by Panic! At The Disco (The order of best to worst is TWTLTRTD, DOAB, Vices and Virtues, AFYCSO, and finally Pretty. Odd.) But not many people realize that AFYCSO actually forms a story.
When actually thought about it's pretty obvious though. The very first song is an instrumental called "Introduction". As in the introduction to a story. Then the next song is "The Only Difference Between A Martyrdom and A Suicide is Press Coverage" This makes it pretty obvious it's a story in the lyrics.
And I believe
This may call for a proper introduction, and well
Don't you see?
I'm the narrator, and this is just the prologue
Swear to shake it up, and you swear to listen
Oh, we're still so young, desperate for attention
I aim to be your eyes, trophy boys, trophy wives
Applause, applause, no, wait, wait
Dear studio audience, I've an announcement to make
It seems the artists these days are not who you think
So we'll pick back up on that on another page
This isn't all the lyrics but this is the stuff that sticks out to me. In this, he's literally saying that this is the introduction to the album. He tells us to "sit tight" and tells us to snap our fingers and tap to the beat, to get the story started, making sure we're paying attention. He calls himself the narrator as well. Then he goes on to say he swears to "shake it up" or keep the story interesting as long as we listen. Then he "aims to be our eyes" as in he wants to make sure this is actually what we're looking for in a story and what we want to hear about.
"London Beckoned Songs about Money, Written by Machines" is basically just about a charismatic little boy who wants to write for the newspaper. And it goes on saying to be popular, you're either going to be loved or hated, and you just gotta pick which side you want to be on.
Well, this poor little boy took the wrong side and now he's depressed and in a psych ward. That's the place of "Nails For Breakfast, Tacks For Snacks".
Prescribed pills
To offset the shakes
To offset the pills
You know you should take
It a day at a time
He tried to overdose himself and got put into the psych ward. He was taking he prescribed pills to offset his shakes, but then he'd take more to offset the pills he just took. And the people in the hospital taking care of him are saying he should only take them one at a time for each day, instead of the handfuls he's been doing.
That's when you stu-stu-stutter something profound
To the support on the line
And with the way you've been talking
Every word gets you a step closer to hell
It also leads you to believe he turned himself into the hospital. He stutters something profound to a support line which probably is the reason he got put in there.
I am
Alone in this bed, house, and head
And she never fixes this
But at least she
Another thing is it leads you to believe he's having these difficulties because of a woman. He feels alone and when it gets to "at least she" it fades out, implying she's doing nothing, and that's the issue.
The hospice is
A relaxing weekend getaway
Where you're a cut above all the rest
Sick and sad patients on first name basis with all the top physicians
Also, he's been in here a lot because he's on first name basis with all the doctors, he most likely comes in just to get away from his everyday life.
"Camisado". My personal favorite song from this album. In this one, we get to the point where the kid has actually tried to kill himself and is in an actual hospital this time, not just the psych ward.
The I.V. and your hospital bed
This was no accident
This was a therapeutic chain of events
It also continues talking about how he does things like this often.
You're a regular decorated emergency
The bruises and contusions will remind you what you did when you wake
You've earned a place atop the ICU's hall of fame
The camera caught you causing a commotion on the gurney again
He's there so often that he's in the ICU's hall of fame. And even though he's in the hospital he's still making a scene while being carried in.
Time to dance. This one is actually based off of the book Invisible Monsters and doesn't really fit in with the rest.
"
Lying is the Most Fun A Girl Can Have..."Now we get into the girl's perspective. (In Nails For Breakfast I said something about how I feel this is based on woman problems.) I have an entire blog post about this song so I'm not going to get to into this one. It's about a girl who sleeps around on her boyfriend.
Then the "Intermission", just to kinda bring you back in to help you remember this is a story. To give you a break and let you soak in all the story they've already given you.
"
But it's better if you do" Lying is the most fun... and this song title's both come from Natalie
Portman's line in The Closer. I tried to find a YouTube video of it but all of them have been muted that I tried. But anyway, this song is the girl telling the boy he's worthless and his response is "I'm an adult now so I'm going to drown my sorrows in beer and strippers." That's literally the whole song.
"
I Write Sins Not Tragedies" They make up and decide to get married and then she cheats on him again. In the music video it also goes more into detail on how the boy isn't really accepted by the girl's family too. The girl's family is very prim and proper. But then the groom's family comes in and they're all carnies and just ridiculous looking. The bride's family also looks noticeably
uncomfortable and annoyed. Then you get later in the video and Brendon leads the groom out to catch the bride in the act of making out with another man. On their wedding day. That's a real piece of work. (I guess that's why he calls her a... guava... a few of you might get that inside joke.)
"I Constantly Thank God For Esteban". This song is basically the groom standing in the front of the church whining at everyone. Since he was the only one that didn't know she was cheating and everyone was just hiding it from him. He says "come congregation, let's sing it like you mean it" since they're all in a church and all, and what they're singing is the lies they're telling groom about the bride. So the title comes back in since Esteban is I'm assuming the name of the one guy who actually told him what's up.
"There's A Good Reason These Tables Are Numbered Honey, You Just Haven't Thought of It Yet".
Please, leave all over coats, canes and top hats with the doorman
And from that moment, you'll be out of place and underdressed
I'm wrecking this evening already and loving every minute of it
Ruining this banquet for the mildly inspiring and?
This is song is about the boy and girl later in the future just so happen to be at the same party. And the boy is telling the girl to take off her coat, can and top hat but is actually saying it to be her lies and coverups that she stands on and after that she'll realize how out of place she truly is.
I am the new cancer, never looked better you can't stand it
Because you say so under your breath
You're reading lips, when did he get all confident?
But now the girl is also faced with the horrific fact that she lost a diamond while searching for rocks pretty much. He's the "new cancer" because he's taking over the party and is all she can think of and clearly she's jealous.
Next is a trip to the ladies room in vain
I bet you just can't keep up (keep up) with these fashionistas
And tonight, tonight you are the whispering campaign
I bet to them, your name is Cheap and that to them you look like s**t
Talk to the mirror, choke back tears, and keep telling yourself,
I'm a diva
Oh, and the smokes in that cigarette box on table,
They just so happen to be laced with nitroglycerin
She's also obviously used to being the talk of the party, just not in a negative way. So she hides in the bathroom to try and clean up and hide her tears. Then she goes to smoke a cigarette that happens to be laced with nitroglycerin, which she doesn't know. So whenever she lights it it blows up in her face and makes her look like a fool.
And I know, and I know It just doesn't feel like a night out
With no one sizing you up
I've never been so surreptitious,
So of course you'll be distracted when I spike the punch
Again it brings out the point that she's used to being the center of attention but also brings into attention that she gets around since she's used to people "sizing her up". But he's saying that he's going to spike her punch to again make her look like a fool like before with the cigarettes.
So this song is basically just a "get back at your ex" song.
"
Build God, Then We'll Talk " This is back to the girls perspective. The beginning really sets a scene in "the bad part of town." and talking about a really gross hot
el. It even goes as far as to say “Any practiced Catholic would cross themselves upon entering”. Meaning that the motel is so bad that anyone with morals wouldn’t want to enter it from being so disgusted.
Then we get to the people in the hotel. We have a lawyer and a virgin. This implies that the girl who "sleeps around" in the story above probably never actually slept with anyone, but was just a little touchy and cheat-y hence why she was a bit offended that the guy flipped out as much as he did, even though he did still have rights. But anyway now the girl is single and alone and needs a job. So the lawyer is going to demand the girl to sleep with him in order for her to get her job. The lawyer's wife knows this, but stays with him anyway because she's only with the lawyer for his money.
Well, only hours before, after he had left
She was fixing her face in a compact
There was a terrible crash
Between her and the badge
She spilled her purse and her bag
And held a "purse" of a different kind
Along with the people inside
So afterwards, when the girl is getting cleaned up the police barge in, the "terrible crash", since this hotel is one known for prostitution, and demand the girl to dump out her purse in search for money. Obviously the police don't find anything and let her free. The "purse of a different kind" however is a fetus in the womb. Saying that in the virgin and lawyers time together a child was conceived.
There are no raindrops on roses and girls in white dresses
It's sleeping with roaches and taking best guesses
At the shade of the sheets and before all the stains
And a few more of your least favorite things
It then says there's no raindrops for girls in white dresses. Since white is commonly known as a symbol of purity and rain is a common symbol of cleansing it's basically saying that the once innocent and virgin girl isn't going to have a chance of cleansing. Sleeping with roaches is the lawyer and her best guess was to sleep with him to get the job. The shade of the sheets and before the stains- before they had sex and discolored the sheets. A few more of your least favorite things is self-explanatory.
So the story goes on with the life of a boy and his failed attempts at love. 
