The band's single "It's Time", which previously appeared on the "It's Time" and "Continued Silence" EPs in addition to appearing on "Night Visions", is the group's biggest hit, reaching #33 on the Billboard Hot 100.
In a dark kitchen in the middle of a sweaty night in Las Vegas, all 6’4” of Dan Reynolds is hunched over a laptop, slapping beats on the table and crooning lyrics into a tiny microphone. Before long, he and the other three members of indie rock band Imagine Dragons would be playing “It’s Time,” that same laptop-demo-turned-supersized-anthem, from the roof of a parking garage to a wave of thousands of screaming fans. This song title to the single from their 2012 debut KidInaKorner/Interscope release “Continued Silence EP” is an all too apt descriptor of the band’s hard-earned success—but it’s also emblematic of the deep-seated anxiety Reynolds and the rest of the band experienced leaving behind any realistic expectation of a normal job to do the thing they love most.
A third-generation Las Vegas native, Reynolds is no stranger to the adage “the house always wins,” choosing to pave his musical career with a near obsessive work ethic and hundreds of unused demos rather than roll the dice with the first songs that sprung from his mouth. It’s no surprise, then, that he was drawn to guitarist Wayne Sermon, another founding member of Imagine Dragons. Having practically grown up in a recording studio and graduated Berklee College of Music, Wayne had been practicing his guitar through meals and other socially inappropriate situations as long as he could remember; he challenged Dan in a way that was both uncomfortable and exactly what they both needed. When they began writing songs together and recognized something special was happening, Wayne called up his Berklee friend Ben McKee, who promptly dropped out of school with only a few credits left, moving across the country to play bass for the band. This sort of reckless/genius behavior is typical for Ben, who has an uncanny penchant for spicy food and a suitcase full of unbelievable road stories. More recently, the band was joined by drummer Daniel Platzman, another Bostonian schoolmate who seems way too nice to be playing rock and roll until you actually see him in action.
Several tours and three self-released EPs later, Imagine Dragons had made a serious name for itself, particularly in the west coast circuit. Although their songs vary from nearly whimsical and light to brooding and powerful, listeners are drawn to the inherent honesty in the music. The only rule of thumb for the band, it seems, is to write from a true place; the result is songs that literally run the spectrum of human emotion. Attend a concert, and it becomes clear that the live performance of deeply personal songs has a real effect on people. And the band itself is not immune, as demonstrated when Dan literally passed out into the drum set during a finale song, sending cymbals and drum stands crashing while the rest of the band played on until the close.
Great songwriting is bound to be noticed eventually. As proof that the harder you work, the luckier you get, one of those people who noticed was Grammy winning producer Alex da Kid (Eminem, Rihanna). Alex and Dan began collaborating on projects, and soon the band had developed a relationship with Alex and his team. The alchemy resulting from Alex’s hip hop sensibilities and Imagine Dragons’ anthemic rock is nothing short of explosive. The byproduct of this creative collision is “Continued Silence,” a six song in-your-face sonic grenade that breaks musical boundaries and yet is strangely relatable by its improbably diverse audience.
Despite it all, on any given day when they aren’t on the road playing shows, you can still find Imagine Dragons huddled away in a rehearsal room somewhere, banging out song after song in search of the next perfect track. Like most things in Vegas, the band is angled at going big or going bust. For the sake of those who love great music, we hope it’s the former.
Pantomine
Imagine Dragons Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That's why I only love you part time
It's just a matter of "Oh, don't touch me
Don't you, don't you touch me no more"
You got me feeling like a paradigm
Your friends all want me in the meantime
It's just a matter of "Oh, don't touch me
Don't you, don't you touch me no more"
Hey, you got all the money, honey
Your eyes are looking runny and red
Hey, you think all your friends are funny
But all your friends are way overfed
You left me, baby, for another man
He's looking tall, he's got a deep tan
It's just a matter of "Oh, don't touch me
Don't you, don't you touch me no more"
He's got religious with the rhinestones
Takes care of business on his cellphone
It's just a matter of "Oh, don't touch me
Don't you dare touch me no more"
Hey, you got all the money, honey
Your eyes are looking runny and red
Hey, you think all your friends are funny
But all your friends are way overfed
If you've got to go, I won't stop you
You'll hear me singing you
"Glory! Glory! Hallelujah
You've made it easy for the both of us"
If he's got a chest and some arms
He'll hear me singing you
"Glory! Glory! Hallelujah
You've made it easy for the both of us"
Hey, you got all the money, honey
Your eyes are looking runny and red
Hey, you think all your friends are funny
But all your friends are way overfed
If you've got to go, I won't stop you
You'll hear me singing you
"Glory! Glory! Hallelujah
You've made it easy for the both of us"
If he's got a chest and some arms
He'll hear me singing you
"Glory! Glory! Hallelujah
You've made it easy for the both of us"
In "Pantomime," Imagine Dragons sings about feeling like a performer on stage, faking a show for the world to see, a pantomime. Despite this, they still have feelings, particularly for someone who doesn't quite feel the same way. The singer declares that they only love this person part-time, and they are constantly reminded that they can't touch them, as if the feeling isn't mutual. The lines "You've got me feeling like a paradigm, your friends all want me in the meantime" suggest that they are just a means to an end, a temporary placeholder in this person's life until someone else comes along.
The second verse paints a detailed picture of the person the singer is addressing. They are portrayed as wealthy but unfulfilled, with "runny and red" eyes and friends who are "way overfed." The line "He's got religious with the rhinestones, takes care of business on his cellphone" suggests that the new man in the picture is flashy and superficial, with a reliance on technology. Again, the singer repeats the theme of not being able to touch them, signaling that they are no longer in the picture.
The repeated lines about "Glory! Glory! Hallelujah, you've made it easy for the both of us" turn the song into a bitter, sarcastic celebration of the end of the relationship. The singer acknowledges that their love was always one-sided, and now that the other person has moved on, they have to accept it and move on as well.
Line by Line Meaning
You've got me feeling like a pantomime
You are making me feel like I am putting on a show or play, pretending everything is okay when it is not.
That's why I only love you part time
My love for you is not consistent and is limited, because of the way you make me feel.
It's just a matter of "Oh, don't touch me
Don't you, don't you touch me no more"
I am not comfortable with your touch or physical presence in my life anymore.
You got me feeling like a paradigm
You have made me feel like an example or model of something, but it is not a good thing.
Your friends all want me in the meantime
Your friends are interested in me, but it is only temporary, as I am not fully committed to this relationship.
Hey, you got all the money, honey
Your eyes are looking runny and red
Hey, you think all your friends are funny
But all your friends are way overfed
You may have wealth, but it does not bring you happiness, and your lifestyle is unhealthy and unsustainable.
You left me, baby, for another man
He's looking tall, he's got a deep tan
It's just a matter of "Oh, don't touch me
Don't you, don't you touch me no more"
You have moved on to someone else who appears to be physically attractive, but I still do not want you to touch me or come back to me.
He's got religious with the rhinestones
Takes care of business on his cellphone
It's just a matter of "Oh, don't touch me
Don't you dare touch me no more"
The new person in your life may appear flashy and successful, but I still do not want any physical contact with you or them.
If you've got to go, I won't stop you
You'll hear me singing you
"Glory! Glory! Hallelujah
You've made it easy for the both of us"
If you must leave me, I will not try to stop you, and I will celebrate the end of our troubled relationship.
If he's got a chest and some arms
He'll hear me singing you
"Glory! Glory! Hallelujah
You've made it easy for the both of us"
If the new person in your life is physically attractive, I will still be happy that I am no longer in this relationship.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BENJAMIN ARTHUR MCKEE, DANIEL COULTER REYNOLDS, DANIEL WAYNE SERMON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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