IMAGINE DRAGONS

CREATIVITY LIVES ON

THE CRIMSON LION

How the band has found the formula for success in the most unlikely places

Getting a job in the entertainment industry after you graduate

The cafe that smokes the competition

MUSIKvol. 4 feb / mar 2013

read. listen. repeat.

Main Feature:

study break

fast forward

INSIDE

what’s nowImagine Dragons

Catch up with them on their tour and get info on hitting the recording studio

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new places to hang out

latest music releases

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upcoming shows and festivals

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creative jobs in media and entertainment

So you’re out in the real world, what’s next? ............ 38

The local scene

Fresh out of the oven

Look forward to something other than finals week

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IMAGINE DRAGONSThe story of how one band’s big ideas helped them rise to fame.

IT’s the one thing, as artists, that we get to keep to ourselves,” Imagine Dragons’ front man Dan Reynolds said when asked the meaning of the band’s name. Yep, with apologies to fan boys all over the world and quite possibly Middle Earth, the buzzworthy Las Vegas alt-rock group didn’t name themselves over an undying love of Game of Thrones, Dungeons & Dragons, or anything medieval or fantasy filled.

We were sitting down and came up with a phrase that we felt particularly connected to, but we didn’t want to call it that. It just didn’t flow right,” Reynolds explained in an April 25 interview.

“We ended up rearranging the letters and did an anagram. We haven’t told anyone except our manager and our spouses. It’s funny how people will try to guess what it means... a lot of people think it’s a drug reference. Reynolds said everything from “Aged Mens’ Radio” to “Gemini is So Grand” have been suggested by fans, but they’ll keep everyone guessing for now. Whatever their name means is sort of irrelevant considering it’s the music everyone has been paying attention to lately.

on my favorite alt-rock station. When a song is most honest and most raw that’s when you know you’re doing something right. A lot of my favorite artists are able to be in touch with their problems and put it through melodies. It happens all the time with bands.

I always would dream of making music videos. My favorites are always the more conceptual videos -- the ones that got you thinking how it related to the song. There’s something about puzzles I love. When we were making the video for “It’s Time” I wanted to make it a little. It’s a song that people can interpret in so many ways. I hate it when artists say what it exactly means. It really compartmentalizes it. I always like to leave art and music open to interpretation

The band, which consists of Reynolds on vocals, guitarist D. Wayne Sermon, drummer Daniel “Z” Platzman and bassist Ben McKee, have been enjoying success with their current single “It’s Time” off of their new EP Continued Silence. The track has been played repeatedly on many alternative rock stations (the EP is in the top ten of Soundscan’s Alternative New Artist Albums chart), and MTV just named

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Go pick up a copy of Night Visions and check them out on tour in a city near you!

Photo taken at the 2013 Music Awards and the group pictured together

There’s no place where we feel more at home than on the road.

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“the song’s video its PUSH artist of the week a few weeks back. I caught up with Reynolds and asked him about the band, their current tour (they’re on the road with The Jezabels* tour dates below), and how “It’s Time” manages to stay cool even when played ad nauseum