Imagine Dragons dive into the darkness with brave new album

By MARK KENNEDY
AP Entertainment Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — The new Imagine Dragons album cover depicts a man falling through space, gravity gently pulling him down. Inside is the sound of a man grappling with his own fall. Lead singer, songwriter and lyricist Dan Reynolds has poured heartache, tragedy and his struggles with sobriety into the raw, confessional and searing “Mercury — Act 1.” It’s a brave album from a band refusing to retreat into past hits. The 13-track collection uses Reynolds’ falsetto to great effect. His lyrics ache with a portrait of a man who has lost friends to cancer, had his personal life collapse and battled depression and addiction. Reynolds says “Mercury — Act 1″ “is primarily about taking action and rebuilding.”