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.
Ready Aim Fire
Imagine Dragons Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The darkness will fall
We never quite thought
We could lose it all
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire
An empire is falling
You close your eyes
And the glory fades
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire away
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire away
Off in the distance
There is resistance
Bubbling up and festering
Hey mr motion
Make me a potion
Shake it all up
With your mistery
How come I've never seen
Your face around here
I know every single face
Around here
A man on a mission
Changing the vision
I was never welcome here
We don't have the choice to stay
We'd rather die than
Do it your way
With our backs to the wall
The darkness will fall
We never quite thought
We could lose it all
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire
An empire is falling
In just one day
You close your eyes
And the glory fades
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire away
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire away
Checking the casing
Shaking and pacing
This is the tunnels life
Blood in the writting
Stuck in the fighting
Look through the riffle's sight
How come I've never seen
Your face around here
I know every single face
Around here
Hearing the echo
Holding the shackle
I was never welcome here
We don't have the choice to stay
We'd rather die than
Do it your way
With our backs to the wall
The darkness will fall
We never quite thought
We could lose it all
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire
An empire is falling
In just one day
You close your eyes
And the glory fades
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire away
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire away
Oh
Oh oh
Oh
Oh oh oh
Oh oh
Oh
With our backs to the wall
The darkness will fall
We never quite thought
We could lose it all
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire
An empire is falling
In just one day
You close your eyes
And the glory fades
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire away
Ready aim fire
Ready aim fire away
The song Ready Aim Fire by Imagine Dragons is full of powerful and impactful lyrics that urge listeners to take action against oppressive forces. The opening lines “With our backs to the wall, the darkness will fall. We never quite thought we could lose it all” depict a sense of urgency and danger that sets the tone for the rest of the song. The chorus, “Ready aim fire, an empire is falling in just one day, you close your eyes and the glory fades, ready aim fire away” is rousing and exhilarating, encouraging listeners to stand up against oppressive regimes and take control of their lives.
The second verse of the song delves deeper into the themes of resistance, speaking of “off in the distance, there is resistance, bubbling up and festering”. The singer of the song, who is frustrated with the way things are, implores “hey Mr. Motion, make me a potion, shake it all up with your mystery”. This could be seen as a reference to the idea of alchemy, turning base metals into gold. The idea is that through resistance and rebellion, the singer can use whatever tools they have at their disposal to create something greater.
The final lines of the song “We don't have the choice to stay, we'd rather die than do it your way” are particularly powerful, demonstrating the lengths that someone is willing to go to regain their freedom and autonomy. Overall, the song is an anthem for those who feel oppressed and powerless and encourages them to rise up and take control of their own destiny.
Line by Line Meaning
With our backs to the wall
In a desperate situation, feeling trapped and surrounded
The darkness will fall
Things will get worse and hope will fade
We never quite thought
We never imagined
We could lose it all
We could suffer total defeat and lose what we've been fighting for
Ready aim fire
We're prepared to fight back with force
An empire is falling
A powerful entity is crumbling
In just one day
In a very short amount of time
You close your eyes
You're in disbelief and can't bear to watch
And the glory fades
The once impressive success fades into obscurity
Ready aim fire away
We're prepared to unleash our aggression and fight back with determination
Off in the distance
Somewhere far away
There is resistance
There are people fighting back
Bubbling up and festering
Building and growing stronger
Hey mr motion
An addressing of someone with power and control
Make me a potion
Provide something to help us gain strength and power
Shake it all up
Mix it together to create something powerful
With your mystery
With the secret knowledge that you possess
How come I've never seen your face around here
The singer is confused as to why they haven't met this person before
I know every single face around here
The singer is familiar with everyone in the area
A man on a mission
Someone driven and focused on achieving a goal
Changing the vision
Making a significant change to how things are done
I was never welcome here
The artist was never accepted or included in this place
We don't have the choice to stay
We are forced to take action and cannot remain where we are
We'd rather die than do it your way
We refuse to submit to the opposing force and will fight to the end
Checking the casing
Making sure the weapon is ready for use
Shaking and pacing
Feeling nervous and agitated
This is the tunnel's life
This is the harsh reality of war and struggle
Blood in the writing
Violence and conflict is present in what is being communicated
Stuck in the fighting
Trapped in the war zone with no way out
Look through the rifle's sight
Aiming the weapon and preparing to shoot
Hearing the echo
Hearing the sound of gunfire and chaos
Holding the shackle
Feeling trapped and confined
Oh
Expressing a strong emotion, possibly desperation or anger
Oh oh
An amplification of the previous emotion
Oh oh oh
The emotion and urgency is reaching a peak
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: JOSHUA FRANCIS MOSSER, ALEXANDER JUNIOR GRANT, DANIEL COULTER REYNOLDS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@thismuricanboi7869
“Off in the distance there is resistance”
“And empires fall in just one day”
This song reminds me of World War One.
Edit: A lot of people are talking about this in the comments, so I’ll try and explain my thinking:
Before WW1, Europe was almost completely ruled by Monarchies, and the empires (or great powers) had remained mostly the same since the Congress of Vienna in 1815, which essentially balanced European states in an attempt to avoid a Napoleon scale conflict. This was surprisingly effective, but was ruined in the formation of the German Empire in 1871, which was formed by Prussia after the Franco-Prussian War, where a bitter France lost Alsace Lorraine. But still, for another 43 years, the fragile balance held, mainly due to the expert diplomacy of Prussian diplomat Otto von Bismarck (Who is an extremely interesting figure). However after 1890, he was fired by the Kaiser of Germany. 24 years later, a chain of alliances began the First World War.
So essentially, the European empires have remained relatively the same for the last 100 years, with some form of monarchies in place (Minus the French). However this was about to change, and this is where these two lines come in.
“Off in the distance there is resistance,” refers to the outbreak of World War One (obviously), but also to the complex geopolitical alliances and counter alliances, plus the bitterness of nations like France, who wanted to see a stop to the new German Empire.
“And Empires fall in just one day,” refers to the treaties signed that ended the wars for each nation. World War One is often considered the end of the dominance of Monarchies, as ideologies like Communism, Republicanism, Democracy, and plain old authoritarianism took root. Not to mention that after the war, 4 major empires would fall, including the Russian, German, Ottoman, and Austro-Hungarian empires. And while the treaties for each of the countries were separate and at different times, imagine how quickly all of this happens relative to the time. Europe had been dominated by the exact same monarchies for about 100 years, and in just 3 (1917-1919), 4 of these major empires would fall, and the age of monarchism would effectively end. While this isn’t just one day, it is incredibly fast relative to the time period.
So that is just my take on it, I hope anyone who wanted clarification understands where I’m coming from now.
@CrumpetCraig
This song reminds me of the French Revolution, French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars.
"Ready, aim, fire" - Napoleon's overuse of artillery.
"Darkness will fall" - Napoleon trying to conquer a bunch of places.
"Up in the distance, there is resistance" and "We'd rather die than do it your way" - People sacrificing themselves to overthrow the monarch.
"We never quite thought we would lose it all" and "An empire's fall in just one day, you close your eyes and your glory fades" - Napoleon looked like he was winning, but he ended up losing and his empire fell. He then got exiled to Elba, and his glory faded. He came back to France, again, and then took power, but his glory faded, so he didn't win in Waterloo.
@catelinsanjose3833
“Rome wasn't built in a day, but it burnt in one.”
@catelinsanjose3833
@Puppylover 4975 In real life, Rome did got burnt.
@larrytjoelker7003
I hate Rome so those is a great comment👍
@carterthegamer3029
larry tjoelker lol why?
@xxpoltergeist_ellaxx
@@larrytjoelker7003 why do you hate Rome?
@nkoawest4392
Actually the Great Fire of Rome was more like 9 days but I get the sentiment haha
@JuStDoNtRaG3
"an empires fall in just one day"
Rome: now you listen here you little shi-
@CHRF-55457
lol.
@idkwtftoputherelol7963
Lmao-
@Avewyowo
wait...do I hear germans?