Passing note, I also noticed a lot of indie rock influence, where “Yesterday” sounded quite like something Bleachers may have created. It feels personal, it feels raw but in a logically constructed manner, it honestly feels like a testament to who they’ve become now and the journey that brought them to this point. I think the album is very true to the journey of the men behind it– men who have made sense of their suffering (individual and collective) and arrived at a point in their journey where they can really let go and soar, just as many of their songs do. It has shifted from somewhere dismal, tough and self-doubting to somewhere brighter and more reassuring as if some footing has finally been found.Ī lot of times what happens with a second or third album is that an artist seems to lose touch with who they are or what they’ve wanted to make but Imagine Dragons created some really peppy, soaring (powerful, even) tracks for our blessed summer mornings when things can be at their worst and the band has not lost track of who they are or what they want to create for us. For anybody really, I think Evolve can very easily be seen and understood as an album that is coming from a different headspace altogether. I think Evolve does become a representation of the band’s evolution and growth that keeps their identity intact but allows for the differences to filter through. Going in, I kept a few of their interview comments in mind about why this album sounds so different from Smoke + Mirrors, about where it’s coming from and what kind of music they’ve aimed at making.

Urooj: I do believe it strengthens their repertoire. The album is a new, cohesive sound and one that I think will be well-received by their loyal fan base. Evolve combines the catchy aspect with more alternative, pop-sounding melodies. While they had pop hits, Night Visions and Smoke + Mirrors were both mainly filled with hard rock riffs and arena rock melodies. Lawrence: I think Evolve does strengthen their repertoire because the sound is very different than their past albums.

Do you believe Evolve strengthens Imagine Dragons’ repertoire? Why or why not?

Featured here are Watts, Urooj Ali Rizvi, Natalie Harmsen, and Mitch Mosk Atwood Magazine’s writers discuss Imagine Dragons’ third album Evolve and the roles that passion, energy, and honesty play in showcasing a brighter, more mature sound.

Thunder imagine dragons album cover