Imagine Dragons create an immersive concert experience for fans

When Imagine Dragons exploded onto the music scene in 2012, many assumed that they were an overnight success. However, it took many small gigs to get them to headlining the Hollywood Palladium. In a concert hosted by Citi and American Airlines, the alternative rock band discussed its humble beginnings, along with an electrifying performance of its most well-known songs at the Palladium on Sept. 28.

The night started off with an introductory video. In a roundtable discussion, lead vocalist Dan Reynolds, guitarist Wayne Sermon, drummer Daniel Platzman and bassist Ben McKee reminisced about their first shows at Las Vegas casinos, where they played for small crowds and very little money. Gradually, the band built a following and eventually got signed to a label of their choice. As they transitioned into the spotlight, the members of Imagine Dragons never forgot their love for music.

“There’s a definite comfort playing music in front of thousands of strangers, expressing yourself through something you love,” Reynolds said.

Following Reynolds’ closing words, he appeared on the stage singing, “It’s time to begin, isn’t it? / I get a little bit bigger but then I’ll admit / I’m just the same as I was / Now don’t you understand / That I’m never changing who I am,” much to the crowd’s delight. Though the song, which launched Imagine Dragons to fame, is over three years old, the band aptly opened their set with it. Singing the chorus solo, Reynolds was later joined by the rest of the band, amplifying the excitement of the song.

After “It’s Time,” the set design accented each performance. With “Roots,” the band’s newest single, back panels on the stage showed brightly lit leaves as Reynolds chanted, “Another day, another door / Another high, another low / Rock bottom, rock bottom, rock bottom / I’m going back to my roots.”

One of their better known singles, “On Top of the World,” featured lights that danced frenetically across the stage in the same excited way that Reynolds did. Additionally, the fire motif backdrop of “I’m So Sorry” highlighted the lyrics “So you gotta fire up, you gotta let go / You’ll never be loved till you’ve made your own.”

Interspersed between every couple of songs, Reynolds paused to share his band’s experiences. To preface “Amsterdam,” Reynolds told a humorous story about falling in a sewage latrine, much to his chagrin. But more importantly, Reynolds also revealed how he met the rest of the band. He had recently graduated from Brigham Young University and knew Sermon from high school. Sermon’s Berklee College of Music acquaintance, whom he described as “eccentric,” was McKee, a talented bassist who played for a jazz band. With Platzman on drums, they rounded out the band they are today.

Reynolds went into detail about feeling dejected at first when the band first formed in 2008. They played for cabana clubs and other venues that actually required the broke band members to pay them for unsold tickets. At the casinos, casino owners would allow them to play original songs in exchange for covering popular music from famous rock bands. This story cued the band to play “Won’t Back Down” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

Of course, there would be no Imagine Dragons concert without “Demons” or “Radioactive.” While singing “Demons,” Reynolds portrayed a sensitivity that can only be felt at live shows. And for the epic finale, “Radioactive” started with Reynolds, Sermon, Platzman and McKee in a melodic music jam session, drawing out the start of the song. Once the famous beat drop had arrived, Reynolds turned the Palladium into a fanfare, with the entire audience singing along with the band.

Ultimately, Imagine Dragons’ latest concert was a love letter to their fans. In an interactive setting, the band thanked the city it started in and the people that watched them from the very beginning. With Reynolds providing a chronology behind the band’s rise, audience members were able to relate to its songs on a completely different level. Now internationally renowned, Imagine Dragons made it clear that they would not forget the people who brought them to stardom.