In the grand scheme of things, Imagine Dragons are indubitably massive, boasting squillions of streams and downloads. The Las Vegas quartet have won mega industry awards, filled stadiums and headlined stages at last year’s Reading and Leeds festivals. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned them in dispatches.
With Loom, their sixth album, we’re told that “stylistic boundaries have disappeared entirely”.
Trouble is, the rock component seems to have vanished.
The single Eyes Closed features reggaeton artist J Balvin, which gives you some idea where this is headed. One track, the bass-heavy Kid, stands out above the formulaic pummelling of percussion pads. The majority is syncopated lightweight pop, as if selected by algorithms for mass consumption.
