Imagine Dragons

2008–2011: Lineup changes and early EPs

In 2008, lead singer Dan Reynolds met drummer Andrew Tolman at Brigham Young University, where they were both students. Reynolds and Tolman recruited Andrew Beck, Dave Lemke, and Aurora Florence to play guitar, bass, and piano, respectively, for their band. Their name is an anagram for a phrase only known to members of the group, which Reynolds stated each member approved of. The five-piece recorded demos that they uploaded to MySpace that year, but Beck and Florence left the band later that year. In 2009, Tolman recruited long-time high school friend Wayne Sermon, who had graduated from Berklee College of Music, to play guitar. Tolman later recruited his wife, Brittany Tolman, to sing back-up and play keys, and the band began to play...

2016–2020: Evolve and Origins

Imagine Dragons began recording their third studio album in September 2016. The band teased the upcoming album by posting cryptic messages on their Twitter account for the next four months. They released the song "Levitate", recorded for the film Passengers, on December 2, 2016. On January 28, 2017, the band started posting a series of videos teasing the album's first single. The time-lapse videos featured lead singer Dan Reynolds drawing surreal images on a drawing pad. Morse code was hidden in the videos and translated to "objects of same color".

Musical style and influences

Imagine Dragons blur the lines between rock and pop, and have been described as pop rock, electropop, arena rock, alternative rock, indie pop and indie rock. Their music also contains elements of dance-pop, drum and bass, dubstep, EDM, folk, hip-hop, industrial, R&B, synth-pop, and trip hop.

Believer

"Believer" is a song by American pop rock band Imagine Dragons. The song was released on February 1, 2017, through Kidinakorner and Interscope Records as the lead single from the band's third studio album, Evolve (2017).

It was written by the band members, Justin Tranter, Alex da Kid, and its producers Mattman & Robin. The music video features a boxing match between lead singer Dan Reynolds and Dolph Lundgren, marking the first music video that Lundgren appeared in.

Background

In March 2017, Dan Reynolds told People that the song was inspired by his experiences with ankylosing spondylitis that he developed, elaborating by saying:

Composition

"Believer" is an arena rock and pop rock song with "big thundering pop production" and a "catchy sing-along chorus". According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Imagine Dragons Publishing, "Believer" has a tempo of 125 beats per minute. Written in the time signature of 128, the song is in the key of B♭ minor and follows a chord progression of B♭m-G♭-F (i-♭VI-V). Reynolds' vocal range spans from A♭3 to D♭5 during the song.

Critical reception

"Believer" initially divided music critics. In a review for Evolve, Matthew Paterson of The Carolinian called it "quintessential Imagine Dragons in the absolute best way possible". Allan Raible of ABC News considered it a "focus track" from Evolve, saying it is "predictable but it has some dark edges that keep it interesting". Glenn Gamboa of Newsday was also positive of "Believer", saying it "shows just how flexible singer Dan Reynolds' vocals can be".

Music video

The official music video for the song, which is about "finding a place of peace and self-confidence", was released on March 7, 2017. Directed by Matt Eastin, features a boxing match between Reynolds and Dolph Lundgren. It was the first music video that Lundgren appeared in. Reynolds said that Lundgren was a "friend of a friend" and was "into [appearing in the music video] once we told him he could punch me in the face". Reynolds took boxing lessons for a month to get into fighting shape in preparation. One moment in the video that Reynolds said he believed was kept, he said went "too far": "Dolph caught me with a straight right to the jaw on accident and almost knocked me out". Lundgren said that Reynolds was a "worthy opponent" and that...

It's Time

"It's Time" is the debut single by American rock band Imagine Dragons, released on February 6, 2012, as the lead single from the band's first major label EP, Continued Silence. Later that year the song was included on the band's first full album, Night Visions.

The song had already been included on the band's independently released EP It's Time (2011), and it had been available on YouTube since 2010.

Music video

The music video debuted on April 17, 2012, on all MTV affiliates and the band was named PUSH Artist of the Week and later featured on PUSH Live. A first teaser released March 28, 2012. The video also reached number 1 on Yahoo Music's Top Videos.