On a hot Tuesday afternoon in September, Imagine Dragons fans baked in the sun along an unassuming stretch of Los Angeles’ Venice Blvd. that houses KROQ studios, waiting to snatch a spot in the adjoining Red Bull Sound Space. This intimate venue, more suited to garage band rehearsals than top-of-the-chart acts, hosted the Las Vegas-based band and these ardent fans for a special live-streamed performance.
After an introduction by KROQ DJ Nicole Alvarez, Imagine Dragons led the couple hundred attendees and online audience through a decidedly energetic tour of their impossible-to-resist hits, beginning with “Shots” from their latest album Smoke + Mirrors. Frontman Dan Reynolds – man bun pulled tight – showed immediately why his group is known for its stirring live performances.
Hands clenching furiously, face contorted with passion, fists pounding his heart, Reynolds’ obvious rapport with the audience and bandmates enriched songs that have been worn threadbare by radio overplay. Each member of the group contributed vocals at different points, supplying full-throated harmonies, not just background support.
Joining Reynolds on stage were Wayne “Wing” Sermon on guitar, Ben McKee on bass and Daniel Platzman behind the set. Platzman, who had just celebrated his big 2-9 was feted with a chorus of “Happy Birthday” from the crowd and tweaked by Reynolds, who said he looked more and more like Daniel Radcliffe (or maybe Robert Pattinson) as he got older. The lead singer also took the opportunity to get mushy, saying, “The best choice we made as a band was bringing him in as a drummer.”
Imagine Dragons fit nine songs into a 45-minute set with the majority coming from their first album Night Visions, including “On Top of the World,” “Demons” and, of course, “Radioactive.” The band also performed its new, non-album single “Roots,” the music video of which had been released just an hour before on YouTube.
Incongruous introductions, musical flourishes and appended codas made each song a new experience for the fans. “On Top of the World” began with Platzman laying out a lengthy, free-time drum solo. At other points during the set, Reynolds grabbed sticks to beat time or bang away on toms. Sermon switched between electric and acoustic (at one point playing acoustic while wielding both) and even strummed a mandolin. “Radioactive” ended with a jam session with each member hammering away at their instrument, working the audience into a head-banging tizzy before ending with an uncharacteristically metal tag.
More than once during the set, Reynolds sincerely thanked KROQ for giving the band its start. “We owe them a lot,” he said. “They took a chance on a small band from Vegas and changed our lives.” Indeed, one of the biggest fans in the crowd was in KROQ’s extended family. Eddy Alvarez, Nicole’s brother, is an Olympic speed skater who won silver in Sochi while using “On Top of the World” as his hype-up song.
After the set, Nicole Alvarez eschewed a standard sit-down interview for a “game” where band members answered questions about their mates, holding up a cut-out of the face of which member fit the query. Revelations included that McKee was homecoming king, that the two Dans were most likely to cry on stage and that their most embarrassing concert moment was when Reynolds pulled a Spinal Tap and thanked Tampa fans when playing Miami.
After graciously spending 15 minutes with Alvarez and fans, Imagine Dragons left the Red Bull Sound Space with the road calling. The lucky few at KROQ actually saw the band’s last scheduled concert in America before 2016. Until then, Imagine Dragons fans will have to tide themselves over with a download of “Roots,” now available on all digital outlets.
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