Imagine Dragons is back with their second full length studio album, Smoke + Mirrors. At eighteen tracks and over an hour in length, its undoubtedly full. What its also full of, is a variety of approaches to alt-rock. There is no real cohesion from track to track in this album, but it serves Imagine Dragons’ pop style well; each track comes off as a candidate for a single.
I Bet My Life, the albums first single, was well received by the charts, and its clear as to why. Theres a lot of what makes a single great in I Bet My Life. For instance, it opens with a choir and a guitar, followed by soft spoken lyrics. The upbeat pace changes are exactly where they would be expected, flowing very naturally and predictably. The chorus is shouty and filled with claps. Its formulaic, and registers as familiar but different.
This may seem the cynical approach to take to this album, and perhaps in some ways it is, but there is something to be said about a band that nails formula so well over so many tracks and styles. Tracks like Friction and I’m So Sorry, are not pop-rock sensation bait, though they do follow the paths laid before them. Friction, for instance, is one part boyband, one part rock rock, and the keen listener may even note the influence from radio hip-hop.
I’m So Sorry – Imagine Dragons – Single from Smoke & Mirrors
On the other hand, I’m So Sorry is cool and funky western rock, with elements that will bring to mind something like The Black Key’s Howlin’ For You. I’m So Sorry is that modern cowboy-esque rock that seems to be popping up on the edges of the alt-rock scene. Its easy to follow beat and clear/repeated lyrical content make it an easy track to bob your head to and keep track of. There is a nice convention tweaking 30-second clip in the middle of the track that shifts tonally and stylistically so quickly that you may think its a new track. It’s probably the farthest from center this album gets in terms of mixing it up.
Finally, towards the end of the album is a choice track called Release. It’s an acoustic track, and is incredibly satisfying as one. It’s accessible and easy to digest and the lighter pace and tone is well crafted. This is a track that could end up being a fan favorite.
At its heart, Smoke + Mirrors is not the next great alt-rock album. What it is, is every element in the alt-rock scene done well enough. Imagine Dragons seems to have stretched out to many sub-genres of the rock world, and pulled away small fragments and artifacts to reconstruct into an amorphous album that will please the ear. It may not break conventions or stretch the mind, but it will provide a satisfactory listening experience with a sound that is so homogeneous that its sure to stay relevant until their next album, but like their last album, it’ll feel dated by their next release. Luckily, Imagine Dragons has proved themselves to be amorphous enough to keep pace with changing tastes.
-David Navarro
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