Imagine Dragons are, by a country mile, the biggest fucking rock band in the world right now. Second only to Coldplay on Spotify’s global list of the most-streamed rock bands, their anthemic, stadium-filling alt.rock has swept through the US in particular, picking up a veritable slew of AMAs, Grammy and Billboard awards along the way.
In short, they’re big fucking news.
But who the fuck are they, what the fuck do they want and why the fuck should we care? We break it all down for you below…
Who the fuck are they?
Imagine Dragons have had a number of different members since they first rolled onto the scene in 2008, but fuck all that. The current line-up is frontman Dan Reynolds (the band’s only remaining founding member), with long-termers Daniel Wayne Sermon and Ben McKee joining in 2009. Daniel Platzman showed up at some fucking point in 2011. They all hail from Las Vegas and released their debut album, Night Visions, in 2012.
In terms of who does what, it’s fucking confusing, so pay attention. Dan does lead vocals and fucks about on rhythm guitar, piano, keyboards and percussion. Wayne is the guitarist when not fucking about with drums, backing vocals and fucking mandolin. Then there’s fucking Ben: bass, drums, piano, keyboards, synthesisers, backing vocals and guitar. And last but not least, Daniel on fucking drums, percussion, backing vocals, rhythm guitar, viola and keyboards. Fuck me.
What the fuck do they sound like?
They’ve been described as electropop, alt.rock, indie rock and pretty much everything in between, so… fucked if we know. AC/DC it ain’t – imagine a mix of The Weeknd’s slick, brooding beats, Fun.’s sense of, well, fun and Mumford And Sons’ preoccupation with harmony and you’re getting the idea. Fuck it: listen to Thunder, the track below, and you’ll get the idea:
What’s their best fucking song?
Take your pick. Pretty much every single they’ve released since 2015 is still in the top 10 of Billboard’s Hot Rock Songs chart. They made their name with It’s Time and massive radio hit Radioactive, both taken from Night Vision. There’s the catchy-as-fuck single Thunder, an electropop anthem which still packs a punch, and the moody, bass-driven Believer, which is probably our pick of the bunch.
- Ten Second Song Guy does 10 pop songs in the style of Metallica
- Our TeamRock+ offer just got bigger. And louder.
- The Amity Affliction: "There's a reason why pop's popular: It f**king rules"
- The 10 most metal pop songs, as chosen by Novelists
What the fucking fuck is their best video?
The video for Roots is the YouTube favourite, with fans banging on about its nostalgic vibe and moaning that it’s only been viewed a gazillion times. Like, only ONE gazillion! It’s not fair etc…
Yeah, yeah, yeah: But what songs do the real fucking fans like?
Real fans always prefer the older stuff, so 2012 single Radioactive remains a firm fan favourite. It’s not a bad shout – dystopian lyrics which focus on an apocalypse and its resulting revolution and a sinister, booming bassline make it one of the best songs they’ve recorded. It is, however, their most-streamed song on Spotify and been viewed 787 million times on YouTube. Bamboozle fair-weather fans by saying you prefer Walking The Wire.
What do people say about the fuckers?
They can say what they fucking like because Imagine Dragons are richer than God and couldn’t give two shits. Metacritic gives Evolve an average score of 47%, but users were slightly more generous at 6.9⁄10. Classic Rock were gently scathing, The Guardian were cynical and The Independent showed what little understanding they have of genuine rock cliches…
What the fuck do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
