Album Review: Imagine Dragons -Continued Silence EP

Artist: Imagine Dragons
Album: Continued Silence EP
Genre: Indie rock/ Pop
Rating: 4.5/5

I came across this band, and later, this album in quite a roundabout way. It was a late night, and I was hunting for music on Youtube, as I'm prone to do. So I started out listening to some instrumental music, which was pretty good. Then I saw one of those links which said "please go listen to my band ...... we sound like ...... " . So in a moment of spontaneity, I clicked and followed through.
The video was alright, but nothing to amazing. I was scrolling down the comments and waiting for the song to finish when a video in the sidebar caught my eye. The name of the song was "It's Time" and the artist was some band I'd never heard of called Imagine Dragons. My first thoughts were: "That's a FREAKING cool band name!!!" (which it is!). With that in mind, I hit play on the video.

To my surprise, the band actually almost surpassed the awesomeness of their name. "It's Time" was an original song performed live in some studio in the USA. I was instantly drawn to the first few notes on a mandolin and how indie the band looked (I have a weak spot for mandolins and indie bands so this was a winning combination!). Also, the song had some amazing percussion which consisted of the lead singer clapping and stomping on a wooden floor.
The sound was incredible and I was pretty much instantly hooked.

Anyway, so after a little bit more research on the band, I decided to take the plunge and get their album off Itunes. And I can honestly say it was one of the best ten bucks I've ever spent! I don't think I've been this excited about a new band since I saw New Empire for the first time two years ago! But that's another story.
Onto the album!

"Continued Silence" kicks off with a track called Radioactive. The first time I heard this song, I was thinking "What on earth is this?!!!" because, apart from the short intro played on acoustic guitars, it sounds nothing like how an indie rock band is "supposed" to sound like. 30 seconds into the song, a beat kicks in which any dubstep artist would be proud of, and then Dan Reynold's voice comes in over the top, singing in an almost-rap style an anthem-like song about waking up to a new age. It's a powerful message, and a powerful introduction to the album.
Radioactive is followed by Demons. At first I was slightly dubious of a song with such a title, but I was pretty much instantly won over, and it remains one of my favourite from the album, and definitely one of this bands greatest songs to date. It's a slow-burning song, again with a great beat, which is all about failing and how we hide the truth to cover up the darkness inside. The chorus is pretty incredible, with Reynold singing heartfeltedly "When you feel my heat, look into my eyes/ It's where my demons hide/ Don't get to close, it's dark inside/ It's where my demons hide."
The album falters in the middle with two slightly 'weaker' songs, which can't really stand up to the awesomeness of their predecessors. Of the two I probably prefer On top of the world. Though the song is almost to simple, it's catchy tune and Hawaiian vibe can't help but make you smile. The next track, Round and Round pretty much lives up to it's title. It sounds like it's going to get interesting but never quite gets there, and so it seems a little too average in light of the rest of the album. But in saying that, it's not that bad a song. The chorus has some nice harmonies in which almost make it sound like it could be a One Republic tune, and there's an interesting tremolo guitar lick at the end of the song (which unfortunately doesn't last long enough for my liking.) So even though it's not their greatest, it's still a good song and worth checking out.
I was a little bit nervous about the album version of It's Time seeing as the live version is so awesome. Thankfully my doubts were soon stifled, as it sounds pretty close to the one on the Youtube video, the only differences being the percussion is mostly played on the drums, and keyboard and electric guitar parts are added.
The EP finishes on the ballad My Fault. I'd venture, albeit hesitantly, that this is my overall favourite track on the album. Like Demons, it's quite a slow tune, but is more reliant on guitar and a great drum track to move it along. The lyrics are probably the most simple I've heard from Image Dragons so far - the loneliness you feel when you're apart from that special someone. The chorus is just two lines "Is it my fault, is it my fault? We've been missing each other"  but coupled with a great tune, it makes for an amazing statement which touched me in a way which few other tracks on this album did. And on top of that, it's so darn catchy that I've been humming the tune to myself ever since I bought it!
The only problem with it is it finishes too suddenly. That might be just because the chorus is so good you never want it to end, but to me it felt a little to short.
Overall, this album is a great listen. The songs are interesting, radio-friendly, and catchy. The band is exceptionally tight in their performance and undoubtedly talented (check out the above video and another track of theirs called "Clouds" and you'll soon agree), and Dan Reynold's vocals are incredible. The overall style, indie rock with modern beats and folk-sounding lyrics and themes, makes for a diverse and original sound which I haven't heard done this well before. It's fair to say that I'm sort of obsessed with this band now! These songs have been on repeat on my Ipod ever since I bought the album!
The album is not without it's faults, such a faltering stylistically in the middle and the inevitable lack of songs (6 is not enough!); but these are few and far between, and the quality of most of these songs and their production is more than enough to make up for it! Go check these guys out if you haven't already!