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Imagine Dragons, Grammy-winning Las Vegas rockers, play debut Victoria concert

In concert: Imagine Dragons at Victoria's Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre, a sold-out show with about 6,000 attending

What: Imagine Dragons
Where: Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre
When: Sunday
Rating: 3.5 (out of 5)

Imagine Dragons are like Coldplay, in some respects. They qualify as a rock band, but lean heavily toward the pop music of today.

That gives the music of the Las Vegas four-piece a certain ambiguity, which will always be a sore spot for music fans who want authenticity above all else. To their core fans, however, Imagine Dragons are the perfect in-between act: A dash of The Killers, but not too much Maroon 5. That’s pretty much what the band delivered on Sunday night at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre, with approximately 6,000 fans in attendance for the sold-out show.

Much like the aforementioned groups, the fate of Imagine Dragons rests on the shoulders of its frontman Dan Reynolds, who is the force around which the band rotates for practically every song in their catalogue.

To start the night, he roared out of the darkness and onto the satellite stage which extended to centre ice. He was in perpetual motion throughout. Despite his early efforts, he had to will the audience, which was only moderately engaged at the outset, into something resembling a supportive throng. That may have been due to the pacing early on. Three of the band’s first five songs on the night — Believer, It’s Time, and Thunder — were big hits delivered when some fans had not yet warmed up to the evening.

The crowd would come around soon enough. The band’s demographic skews young, so the room needed some time to get acclimated. This was safe entertainment, but fans of the Grammy Award winners would not leave unhappy. At two hours in length, the band did what was asked of it.

Reynolds is extremely comfortable on stage at this point in his career, and his jitterbug energy (which was off the charts) was matched by his heartfelt honesty, something he showcased on several occasions.

He spoke to the kids in the audience in advance of It’s OK, telling them to believe in who they are. He prefaced Shots with a powerful speech about mental health and his own struggles, and how therapy is the reason he’s here today. He also spoke prior to Wrecked about the death of his sister-in-law, who died of cancer two years ago.

He could switch effortlessly between emotions, and did so to the delight of the crowd. Reynolds is a rock star, no doubt. He sang from his knees, blew kisses to the crowd, sang under a spotlight at the piano, and engaged the audience with his arms outstretched. But he also has a very strong voice, and genuinely enjoys what he does. Fame and fortune is not wasted on Reynolds, who gives as good as he gets.

He grew more comfortable and effective as the night progressed, and by the time the group delivered Demons, one of its six substantial hits, late into the evening, the whole operation was humming.

Musically, there is too much going on for any one thing to stick. It’s a feast for the senses, but without virtuosity, or ingenuity. The focus was on bombast.

An Imagine Dragons concert is the musical equivalent of the Marvel Comics Universe: loud, colourful, and with lot of explosions. Fun while you’re seeing it unfold, but somewhat forgettable a week or two afterwards.

Still, there was reason to applaud. The staging would have worked in an area three times the size, which shows that the band brought its stadium set-up for its Victoria debut. That’s a pro move by a band which had a lot to offer its fans on this night.

mdevlin@timescolonist.com