Loom (Imagine Dragons album)

Loom is the sixth studio album by American pop rock band Imagine Dragons, released through Kidinakorner and Interscope Records on June 28, 2024. The standard version of the record consists of nine tracks, their least to date. Produced by the band and longtime collaborators Mattman & Robin, it follows their two-part studio album Mercury – Acts 1 & 2 (2022). The album marks the band’s first release as a trio, due to drummer Daniel Platzman being on an indefinite hiatus from the band since March 2023.

The album received generally mixed to positive reviews from music critics, and peaked at number 22 on the US Billboard 200.

Background and concept
In an interview with the Associated Press, lead singer Dan Reynolds described the creative process behind the album and its cover:

"You can't really tell if it's a sunset or a sunrise, and then there are two people kind of separated standing in front of it. That really kind of sums it up thematically when I listen to it. Is the beginning of something new, or is this the end of something? And the sunset and the sunrise always kind of feels that way to me. It could be either/or."

Singles and promotion
On March 10, 2024, the band began teasing new music on their social media. In the following days, a sand clock was displayed on the official website. By the end of March, the website started showing four doors. The four doors consisted on three different groups competing to get points on multiple mini games; the three groups were Croyants (Believers), Guerriers (Warriors) and Rêveurs (Dreamers), divided according to previous music preference of the users. Each of these groups were referencing a song from the band: "Believer", "Warriors" and "Dream".

Each week, a new door was revealed, showing a new game and some clues about the release date or some of the new songs' lyrics. On April 1, with the opening of the second door, they announced a new song titled "Eyes Closed" would be released on April 3. On April 22, after all four doors were opened, a fifth door –referencing the "Eyes Closed" music video– was revealed, which finally confirmed the new album's name to be Loom. Additionally, a new world tour was announced to begin during the summer.

For the winning team of the four doors, the Croyants, a video was shared with snippets for three songs from the new album, titled: "Fire in These Hills", "Nice to Meet You" and "Wake Up".

On April 25, a post on social media from the band's official accounts teased a new collaboration. On April 30, their official account announced a new version of "Eyes Closed" featuring Colombian singer J Balvin. It was released on May 3.

The official track list, along with the song lengths, were unveiled on May 8.

A second single "Nice to Meet You" was released on May 24.

The band released a music video for "Wake Up" on July 2.

Critical reception
Loom has received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, the album received a weighted average score of 67/100 based on four reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews", the first time one of the band's albums was scored positively.

Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic gave the album a positive review, stating "longtime fans of their aggressive empowerment anthems will delight in this pseudo-'return to form' from the Vegas quartet" and described it as "one of their most satisfying and immediate sets to date". Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone said that the album "finds the band piloting some musical and personal transitions" and later concluding that "Such kind-vibes moments show that within the vast spaces these guys work in, there’s always room for growth". Tom Carr of The Arts Desk remarked that "[Loom] may not be challenging to listen to, but it can’t be denied that Imagine Dragons have a knack for bringing together various textures, and condensing them into something that goes down smooth" and said that "Overall, Loom pleases without blazing any new trails". Robin Murray of Clash gave the album a mixed review, summarizing that it was a "succinct if somewhat unfulfilling return".

Commercial performance
Loom debuted at number 22 on the US Billboard 200 with 28,000 album-equivalent units. It is the band's first album to not peak in the top ten of the chart, as well as their first to not have a song chart on the Billboard Hot 100.

Personnel
Imagine Dragons
 * Dan Reynolds
 * Wayne Sermon
 * Ben McKee

Production
 * Producers – Mattman & Robin for Wolf Cousins Productions
 * Recorded at MXM Studios (Los Angeles, California), Conway Studios (Los Angeles, California), Westlake Studios (West Hollywood, California) and House Mouse Studios (Stockholm, Sweden)
 * Engineered by Jeremy Lertola at MXM Studios, John Armstrong at Conway Studios and Greg Eliason at Westlake Studios
 * Mixed by Serban Ghenea at MixStar Studios (Virginia Beach, Virginia)
 * Mixing assistant: Bryce Bordone
 * Mastered by Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound (New York)