Demons by Imagine Dragons

This is a dialog between the poet and his girlfriend (or his conscience). When you first listen to this song, it appears dark and foreboding. However, deeper inspection reveals shades of grey and even flashes of pure brilliance.

The poet is aware of his dark side, and throughout the song, you will observe his struggle with his ‘demons.’ The poet wants to hide his demons, but his good side (or conscience) does not let him do that. He ends up revealing his true thoughts and intentions.

When the days are cold
And the cards all fold
And the saints we see
Are all made of gold

When your dreams all fail
And the ones we hail
Are the worst of all
And the blood’s run stale

The above lines are straight forward. When the days are cold can be interpreted as ‘difficult times.’ When the cards fold, then the game ends, and along with it, all the action ends. In such downtimes, we start idolizing the ‘saints’ who have been successful materially — saints made of gold.

A person is not truly defeated when he experiences failure. The real defeat comes when he loses hope — his dreams fail, and he has no new blood (no enthusiasm or no new ideas). In such a situation, a person is the most vulnerable. In such a situation, we start idolizing or aspiring to be the ones who, in reality, are the worst of all.

I wanna hide the truth
I wanna shelter you
But with the beast inside
There’s nowhere we can hide

The poet wants to keep a secret, but he cannot. He ends up revealing the truth and his feelings. He wants to shelter his girlfriend(or conscience), but the very beast he wants to shelter from is inside him(in the shelter). Truly there is nowhere ‘we’ can hide. By using the word ‘we’ the poet distances himself from his demons. So, the poet wants to shelter and think good thoughts, but the ‘beast inside’ his head is persecuting him and is preventing him from doing so.

No matter what we breed
We still are made of greed
This is my kingdom come
This is my kingdom come

The poet offers a truism — no matter our heritage and upbringing — we are still ruled by greed (material success). Observe the usage of the word ‘my kingdom’ instead of the usual ‘the kingdom.’ The word ‘the kingdom’ means God’s perfect kingdom. Whereas, ‘my kingdom’ refers to the poet's kingdom with all the evil and greed.

When you feel my heat
Look into my eyes
It’s where my demons hide
It’s where my demons hide
Don’t get too close
It’s dark inside
It’s where my demons hide
It’s where my demons hide

The poet explains his situation and wants his good side to be seen. You get a glimpse of the poet’s good side through his concern and due to the fact that he wants to keep us safe from the demons. He wants us to look into his eyes. However, he cautions us not to get too close because it is also a place where his demons are hiding.

At the curtain’s call
It’s the last of all
When the lights fade out
All the sinners crawl

So they dug your grave
And the masquerade
Will come calling out
At the mess you’ve made

When the ‘play’ — this life — has ended, the judgment day will find all the mess he made.

Don’t wanna let you down
But I am hellbound
Though this is all for you
Don’t wanna hide the truth

The poet is trying to woo his girlfriend, but at the same time, he does not want to hide the truth he knows — he is hellbound.

They say it’s what you make
I say it’s up to fate
It’s woven in my soul
I need to let you go

Many people would have advised the poet ‘to fight his demons, to take action and create his future — it’s what you make.’ However, the poet probably tried but now has lost hope. He is no longer ‘trying to make’ his future. Instead, he has come to accept his fate passively. He is now beyond repair as this philosophy is ‘woven into his soul.’ Once again, the poet reveals his concern when he says that this is the true reason why he needs to let you go.

Your eyes, they shine so bright
I wanna save that light
I can’t escape this now
Unless you show me how

The poet ends the song with a glimmer of hope. He says that he realizes that there is an escape for him from all this, and he wants his girlfriend (or conscience ) to show him the way.