Dragons

Historically, there's a progression that bands usually follow before their sound goes full-on arena rock. Things will start small and gritty, and then as the fame and crowds build, the sound changes to match the massiveness of the venues. However, on their debut album, Imagine Dragons buck tradition and swing straight for the cheap seats, doing away with generations of sonic evolution in favor of the huge, arena-made sound of Night Visions. Dramatic and sweeping, the Las Vegas band works in the same vein as pop giants Coldplay, offering up track after track of hooky and emotional midtempo jams.

Tracks such as beat heavy opener “Radioactive” and the masterfully layered “Demons” could be performed acoustically around the campfire or electrified in concert. “Tiptoe” has elements of classic ‘80s technopop, while “On Top of the World” is a joyous handclap-driven number with big harmony vocals on the chorus and happy drumming. Both the airplay-friendly sound and thoughtful lyrics of “Every Night” are timeless.

Executive produced by Rick Rubin, Imagine Dragons presents the 2 CD deluxe album, Mercury - Acts 1 & 2 - on KIDinaKORNER/Interscope Records. Act 1 includes the hits, "Follow You," "Wrecked," and "Enemy," featuring JID. Act 2 features 18 additional songs including the new single, "Bones."

“One thing we saw very early on in the recording process was the fact that this couldn’t be one record,” Imagine Dragons frontman Dan Reynolds tells Apple Music. “There were two different directions, two stories being told, and two timelines. We had songs that I wrote right after my best friend took his life and right after my sister passed away—you know, grieving songs. And then we had songs that were written, because of COVID, almost three years later, when I was in a totally different place. I had a different story to tell.” The band decided to release two variations on a single theme: Mercury - Act 1 addresses the death and grieving process, while Act 2 unpacks the complicated task of trying to move forward."

Delivered swiftly after Evolve – it follows that 2017 set by a mere 17 months, practically a blip in the context of modern pop – Origins adheres to its predecessor's kaleidoscopic digital aesthetic. Nominally a rock band – and they're more than comfortable pulsing to a big, banging beat – Imagine Dragons are deliberately amorphous, a blob rolling along sucking up anything in its path…