Mercury – Acts 1 & 2 is the full fifth studio album by American pop rock band Imagine Dragons, released through Kidinakorner and Interscope Records. It is a double album consisting of 32 tracks, with the first half, Mercury – Act 1, released separately on September 3, 2021, and Mercury – Act 2, the second half, released on July 1, 2022, as part of Mercury – Acts 1 & 2. Act 2 was only released separately on vinyl. The album was executive produced by Rick Rubin. It is the final Imagine Dragons album to feature long-time drummer Daniel Platzman, who would go on hiatus from the band in March 2023, and announce his permanent departure in August 2024.[2]
Background and concept
Imagine Dragons announced their fifth studio album, Mercury – Act 1 on June 30, 2021, revealing the cover art and release date.[3] On September 2, 2021, the band performed in Brooklyn for a small group of people playing 5 songs, including the tracks "Easy Come Easy Go" "It's Ok" and "One Day". On November 19, 2021, the group released an Amazon Music-exclusive EP titled "Mercury - Act 1 (Amazon Music Live)", which included recordings of the 5 songs performed.[4] The band released Mercury – Act 1 on September 3, 2021. Upon its release, the group confirmed that they would be releasing a sequel album.[5] Frontman Dan Reynolds described the album as split into two sides: one organic and looking inward, the other more aggressive and looking outward. The album touches on themes of loss, loneliness, and grief, while celebrating life:[6]
"I have watched my friends die to drug addiction. [...] The point of art is to share our darkest moments as well as the light ones. I believe that by singing about my own struggle with it, it hopefully will bring someone else some sort of peace or resolve. This record deals with a lot of searching and loneliness, struggling with the finite state of reality. However, I really wanted it to end on a celebratory note. Setting the foundation for a more steady and stable future. I wanted to end the record by focusing on all the things that make me happy. The simple things that keep me going every day. Looking to the future. Pointing out to myself all the beauty that surrounds me."
The album's name is derived from the word “mercurial”, drawing on Reynolds’ mental health struggles and the band's lack of specific genre classification.[7] The band enlisted Rick Rubin as the album's executive producer, whom Reynolds credited with pushing him to be less metaphorical lyrically and embrace the more “uncomfortable” aspects of songs:[6]
"Rick reminded me that over the last decade my fans have grown up with me. They not only want to grow with me, but they expected it. He told me to never worry about pushing them in uncomfortable ways. And that I really would be doing them a disservice if I ever tried to re-create the past or sugarcoat the present. I owe them vulnerability and honesty only."
The band stated that Rick Rubin would executive produce the album. In January 2022, Reynolds claimed the album was "almost done" and would likely be released following the first leg of the Mercury Tour. In an interview released through Apple Music in late March, Reynolds stated that the album was different sonically than their previous albums and said it was influenced by hip hop.[8]
Reynolds, in an interview with Consequence, described the creative process behind the two albums:[9]
We worked with Rick Rubin on these records, and we knew really early on that it was going to be two records. As we went through the songs on the first record, Rick sat me down and we really talked about the theme of it. We realized early on that Act I was focused on death and kind of those shell-shocked feelings that accompany that, whereas Act II is really post-grief and waking up the next day after you've lost someone that you loved.
"Bones" was released as the lead single to Mercury – Act 2 on March 11, 2022.[10] The song was used to promote the upcoming third season of the Amazon Prime Video series The Boys. The release of the song's music video on April 6 coincided with the pre-order of the album.[citation needed] Act 2's second single, "Sharks", was released on June 24, 2022, along with an accompanying music video. It was sent to Italian radio on July 1, 2022.[11]
The third single, "I Don't Like Myself", was released on October 10, 2022, along with an accompanying music video for World Mental Health Day. For the occasion, the band partnered with Crisis Text Line for a fundraising campaign.[12] "Symphony" was released as a single along with a visualizer video. was sent to radio in Italy on November 25, 2022, as the fourth single from the album.[13]
"Crushed" was announced as the fifth single with a release date of May 10, 2023. An accompanying music video was released on the same date. The video was filmed in Ukraine and is in partnership with United24.[14] "Waves" was sent to radio in Italy on May 19, 2023,[15] as a promotional single, and got also its live debut on August 5, in Rome gig of their Mercury World Tour.[citation needed]
Four days after the release of Mercury – Act 1, the band announced that they would embark on a 17-date North American tour, beginning in early February and stretching to March.[16] Pre-sale access was given to American Express Card members on September 7 through September 9. Tickets went on-sale to the general public on September 10, 2021.[17]
On September 2, 2021, the band performed in Brooklyn for a small group of people playing 5 songs, including the tracks "Easy Come Easy Go" "It's Ok" and "One Day". On November 19, 2021, the group released an Amazon Music-exclusive EP titled "Mercury - Act 1 (Amazon Music Live)", which included recordings of the 5 songs performed.[18]
On November 1, 2021, European dates were announced.[19] The European leg spanned 2 months and visited both festivals and stadiums. Tickets for the European leg went on-sale on November 5, 2021. American pop group LANY were initially announced as the opening act for the North American leg of the tour but were dropped shortly after, most likely due to allegations of predatory behavior resurfacing. On December 10, Imagine Dragons announced that Canadian-American singer Grandson and Danish singer MØ would serve as LANY's replacements.
On December 14, 2021, the band announced twelve Canadian tour dates with AVIV serving as the opening act.[20]
On February 25, 2022, the band announced the cancellation of tour dates in Ukraine and Russia, due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
On March 25, 2022, the band announced a second North American leg of the tour, with Macklemore and Kings Elliot serving as opening acts. On April 6, the band announced that Mother Mother would serve as opening act for the European leg of the tour. On August 4, 2022, the band announced the shows of South American leg of the tour. However, on October 17, 2022, just one day before they were set to begin, the shows were postponed due to health issues with lead singer Dan Reynolds. The new dates, scheduled to take place in March 2023, were announced in November.
On November 25, 2022, Live Nation Entertainment announced an additional number of performances in Europe, extending the tour up to September 10, 2023.[21]
On March 3, 2023, drummer Daniel Platzman announced that he would be absent from the South American leg of the Mercury Tour to focus on his health.[22] That same day, he released his first single as a solo artist, titled "Show Me That You Want Me", accompanied with a music video.[23] The band's former drummer and founding member Andrew Tolman sat in for Platzman during the tour and all other performances throughout 2023.[24]
On March 24, 2023, the band announced AJR and Mother Mother as opening acts for their upcoming European leg of the tour in the summer of 2023.
On July 14, 2023, a concert film titled Imagine Dragons: Live in Vegas was released on Hulu. The film showcases the band's full concert at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on September 10, 2022. A live album of the concert was released on July 28, 2023.[25]
Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic was critical of Act 2's unfocused nature and length, stating, "There's simply too much going on and not enough editorial trimming to make this as impactful an experience as Act 1."[27]
Reviewing Act 2, Ali Shutler of The Telegraph was unenthusiastic of the more downtempo songs, claiming they "all trudge towards the same big, emotional finale that's less impactful every time and quickly sucks the joy from the record."[30] Shutler also deemed it forgettable, stating, "In a bid to appeal to everyone, the band have removed anything that would make them stand out. There's no doubt you'll hear Imagine Dragons' music everywhere over the next few months, but you'll be hard pushed to remember it."[30]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Dan Reynolds, Wayne Sermon, Ben McKee, and Daniel Platzman. Additional writers are included below.
The originally released standard version of Mercury – Act 1 does not include "Enemy". The song was added onto the album as an additional track on digital retailers and streaming platforms.
"I Wish" appears on digital and streaming versions, as well as Japanese and Target Exclusive CD versions of Mercury – Acts 1 & 2, but is omitted from the standard physical version. It is also featured on the standalone vinyl versions of Mercury – Act 2.
The Japanese edition of Mercury – Act 1 features the bonus track "Follow You (Summer '21 Version)", produced by Brandon Darner.
The Japanese edition of Mercury – Acts 1 & 2 features acoustic versions of "Believer" and "Follow You", a live rendition of "Wrecked" (dubbed 'From The Bunker'), a solo mix of "Enemy" with a new verse from Dan Reynolds instead of JID, and a live rendition of "Bones" performed at the Climate Pledge Arena.
^"Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 28.Týden 2022 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100" to retrieve the correct chart. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
