Imagine Dragons, Whatever It Takes | Track Review 🎵

Imagine Dragons continue to build a compelling case for their third studio album, ‘Evolve,’ with their third single, “Whatever It Takes.”  

On June 23, 2017, alternative rock band Imagine Dragons plans to Evolve – or so the title of their new album suggests.  In an ambitious, aggressive promo campaign, the band has released three singles (as of publication): “Believer”, “Thunder”, and “Whatever It Takes.”  Does “Whatever It Takes” supplant “Believer” or “Thunder?” No, not necessarily.

While “Whatever It Takes” doesn’t supersede the aforementioned singles, it does differentiate itself, slightly. Arguably, those singles are incredibly similar, in sound and vibe.  On the verses of “Whatever It Takes,” Dan Reynolds approaches the vocals highly rhythmically, in pop-rap fashion.  No, he’s no rapper, but the pacing is quicker than previous songs. It works, but doesn’t provide the most tuneful number.

“Falling too fast to prepare for this
Tripping in a world could be dangerous
Everybody circling, it’s vulturous
Negative, nepotist...”

The verses aren’t exhaustive in regards to length, limiting the pop-rapping.  The pre-chorus and chorus sections are more reasonable in regards to pacing.  On the pre-chorus, Reynolds builds up to the chorus, where Imagine Dragons flexes on the catchy chorus:

“Whatever it takes
‘Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins
I do whatever it takes
‘Cause I love how it feels when I break the chains...”

The bridge section is rich in vocabulary, including words like hypocritical, egotistical, parenthetical, hypothetical, apostrophe, and catastrophe.  Of course, such words all rhyme, arguably compromising the integrity of the vocabulary a smidge.  It is what it is regardless.

Final Thoughts

So, is “Whatever It Takes” a massive departure for Imagine Dragons. NO, once again.  Even though it differentiates itself, “Whatever It Takes” still features the signature cues that have consistently been associated with the Nevada collective.  The chorus remains gargantuan, a staple of the band that made them stand out on their 2012 debut, Night Visions.  There’s still a sense of grandness that’s also captured on “Believer” and “Thunder,” even if it’s a shade less bombastic.  Good, not game changing.

Imagine Dragons • Evolve • Interscope • Release: 6.23.17

Photo Credit: Interscope