Imagine Dragons, Believer | Track Review 🎵

Alternative rock collective Imagine Dragons return with a gargantuan, new single, “Believer.” All in all, you should ‘believe’ in it.

Imagine Dragons have become kind of a big deal – understatement.  In 2012, the alternative band dropped a well-received debut album, Night Visions, featuring mega-hit, “Radioactive.” The follow-up album, Smoke + Mirrors, arrived in 2015.  It didn’t have a hit nearly as big as “Radioactive” or “Demons,” but still performed well upon its arrival on the Billboard 200.  Since Smoke, the Dragons have appeared on a soundtrack single, “Sucker for Pain” (Suicide Squad).  Now in 2017, they make their return, in anticipation for their third studio album with “Believer.”

The script for “Believer” plays true to the identity established by the band.  The drums are gargantuan, packing a mean punch.  Dan Reynolds continues to deliver overt vocals, with a bite.  He also employs a mean falsetto which is key here, particularly during the chorus.  Rhythmically, the melody of the pre-chorus on “Believer” is quick-paced, with a dash of hip-hop sensibility.  There are two distinct pre-choruses, but the approach is similar to both:

“I was broken from a young age
Taking my sulking to the masses
Write down my poems for the few
That looked at me took to me, shook to me, feeling me...”

While the chorus is anthemic as rock often is, it still has a strong urban influence.  This is what made “Radioactive” so electrifying.  Clearly, the chorus is the crème de la crème – it is the selling point for “Believer.”

“Pain! / You made me a, you made me a believer, believer / Pain! / You made me a, you made me a believer, believer / You break me down, you build me up, believer, believer, believer / Pain! / I let the bullets fly, oh let them rain / My life, my love, my drive, it came from / Pain! / You made me a, you made me a believer, believer.”

Final Thoughts

How does “Believer” stack up? All in all, it’s another enjoyable Imagine Dragons record.  It doesn’t trump “Radioactive,” but what does? It isn’t the second coming, but definitely worthy of some spins.

Imagine Dragons • “Believer” • Interscope • Release: 2.1.17

Photo Credit: Interscope