Evolve (Imagine Dragons album) on September 13, 2016, with a picture of guitarist Wayne Sermon in the band's recording studio and continued releasing cryptic messages over the next four months. On January 24, 2017, the band tweeted "goodnight +", effectively ending the "Smoke + Mirrors" album cycle. Reynolds had noted that the album, compared to "Night Visions" and "Smoke + Mirrors", is "an evolution for Imagine Dragons". The album's sound has been described as pop rock while containing elements of R&B, hip hop and EDM. In the months leading up to the album's release, Imagine Dragons used the caption "ƎE" in multiple social media
Gold (Imagine Dragons song) remix of the song was featured on the soundtrack of the video game, "NBA 2K17". According to the sheet music published at musicnotes.com, the song is written in the key of A minor, with a moderate tempo. Along with "Hopeless Opus" and "I'm So Sorry" on "Smoke + Mirrors", the song touches upon lead-singer Dan Reynolds' depression struggles. Dan Reynolds told "Billboard" that "Gold" was one of the last songs to be recorded for "Smoke + Mirrors": "I came home from tour with my head spinning and decided to run away for a bit to the west coast and reflect/write