Maps of Music

Evolve (2017)

Where the lyrics of Evolve take you, and where it was really made.

Imagine Dragons called their third album an evolution, but critics split: some accepted the claim, while others called the record lifeless and commercially oriented.

Key places

Recorded at Capitol Studios, Los Angeles (2017)

Recording site Capitol Studios — Discogs credits list Capitol Studios in Los Angeles among the places where tracks were recorded. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded in Stockholm (2017)

Recording site Master Plan — Discogs credits list Wolf Cousins Studios in Stockholm as a recording site for several tracks. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded in Las Vegas (2017)

Recording site Studio at the Palms — Discogs credits list Ragged Insomnia Studio in Las Vegas as a recording site for several tracks. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded in Santa Monica (2017)

Recording site Ruby Red — Discogs credits list Rodeo Recording in Santa Monica as a recording site for a track. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Evolve (stylized ƎVOLVE): third studio album by American pop rock band Imagine Dragons
• Released 23 June 2017 by KIDinaKORNER and Interscope Records
• Peaked at number 2 on the US Billboard 200
• Four singles: Believer, Thunder, Whatever It Takes, Next to Me
• Promotional single: Walking the Wire
• Nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards
• Frontman Dan Reynolds called the album an evolution for the band, compared with Night Visions (2012) and Smoke + Mirrors (2015)

Background

• Followed Smoke + Mirrors and a ten-month world tour
• Band took a self-imposed break from activity for 2016
• In 2016 the band contributed songs to the soundtracks of Me Before You, Suicide Squad and Passengers
• Preparation of the third album began on 13 September 2016
• Cryptic social media messages built anticipation over the following months
• Official announcement and pre-order start on 9 May 2017

Recording

• Discogs credits list Wolf Cousins Studios in Stockholm and Ragged Insomnia Studio in Las Vegas as recording sites
• Other credited recording sites include Capitol Studios in Los Angeles, Rodeo Recording in Santa Monica and Golden Age in Los Angeles
• Mixing took place at MixStar Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia
• All tracks were mastered at Sterling Sound in New York City
• Alex da Kid served as executive producer; Mattman & Robin, Joel Little, John Hill, Tim Randolph and Jayson DeZuzio also produced tracks

Cover

• Art and design by Beeple; photography by Eliot Lee Hazel

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com · es.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Imagine Dragons is an American pop rock band formed in 2008 and based in Las Vegas, Nevada.
• Dan Reynolds met drummer Andrew Tolman at Brigham Young University in 2008; the two recruited other members to form the band.
• The band's lineup changed several times; Wayne Sermon and Ben McKee completed the core line-up by 2009.
• The band released their first EPs in Las Vegas and signed with Interscope Records in November 2011.

Members

• The current lineup consists of lead singer Dan Reynolds, guitarist Wayne Sermon, and bassist Ben McKee.
• Daniel Platzman joined as drummer in 2011 and was later absent from the band; Andrew Tolman served as touring drummer.

Career

• Debut album Night Visions (2012) peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200; the single "Radioactive" topped the Hot Rock Songs chart for 23 weeks.
• Smoke + Mirrors (2015) became the band's first album to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
• Evolve (2017) produced the chart-topping singles "Believer", "Thunder", and "Whatever It Takes".
• Origins (2018) debuted at No. 2 in the US; Mercury – Acts 1 & 2 (2022) and Loom (2024) followed.
• The band has sold more than 74 million albums and won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance for "Radioactive".
• Critical reception of their albums has been mixed, though the band remains commercially successful.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Received mixed reviews from critics; some acknowledged the band's claim of evolution, others described the album as lifeless and commercially oriented
• Metacritic gave an average score of 47 from 7 reviews, which indicates mixed or average reviews
• Newsday's Glenn Gamboa gave the album a B+ and wrote that the group seemed ready to transcend genre labels
• NME's Alex Flood gave three out of five stars and said the record was a small progression but far from an evolution
• AllMusic gave three out of five stars; Stephen Thomas Erlewine said its bold, colorful textures pushed aside introspection
• The Ringer's Rob Harvilla gave a mixed review, calling the album not great by any means but awfully shrewd
• Classic Rock Magazine gave one and a half stars out of five, saying the band aims for more rock noise but the result falls flat
• The Guardian's Hannah J. Davies gave two stars out of five and called it lifeless electronic-tinged arena rock
• The Independent gave two out of five stars and said the album mostly falls back on tired rock clichés

Reappraisal

• The source gives no later reappraisal of the album

Records

• Debuted at number 2 on the US Billboard 200 with 147,000 album-equivalent units, of which 109,000 were pure album sales
• Third top five album for Imagine Dragons
• Certified 4× Platinum by the RIAA as of 2 December 2024
• Certified Platinum in France; certified by the RIAA as Platinum on 31 October 2017

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The time-lapse teaser videos for the first single hid Morse code that translated to a short phrase about objects of the same color.
• Whatever It Takes was first released as the album's first promotional single before becoming the third single.
• Believer was used in a Super Bowl LI commercial for the Nintendo Switch and in the trailer for the 2017 film Murder on the Orient Express.
• Next to Me is referred to as track 1 in the album's credits.
• The album earned a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Album at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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