My first thought about the band Tame Impala was that it might be an anagram of Vlad the Impaler. I was happy to discover that I was wrong. Urban legend told me that the main man Kevin Parker named the band after his Impala guitar, in a personal quest to tame it. Other sources (Wikipedia) said that it refers to the African animal, and a moment of human/beast recognition. Take your pick.
Tame Impala were described to me as a ridiculously young and talented bunch of Australians, who should have been born in the 60s. I was curious to hear what sort of textures they had in their pockets. I feel that Kevin Parker has embarked on a very bold project, which actually does not show too much reverence to the past, or to generic definitions. The song titles and album artwork both suggest a cosmic and dreamlike leaning, but the percussive and electronic details within the music itself makes these images powerfully new instead of clichéd.
Innerspeaker, their first album, is full of a joy and diversity. Kevin’s voice does remind me of John Lennon, especially in Lucidity.
The second track, Desire Be, Desire Go is a funny one – it sounds like the theme of a 90s car advert combined with an epic vintage chorus. I wasn’t sure about it at first, just because it reminded me so heavily of something else. It’s an amazing record though, and a good aperitif for the second album.
Kevin Parker really knows what he’s doing now. Lonerism is braver, weirder and better than before. The songs seem to have their own confidence. They are never rushed or contrived into traditional structures. It is the first album I actually went out and bought new on vinyl in ages.
I have to mention Elephant first, as it was the first song I heard. It’s insane, and completely captivating. The organ and the synth (and some other things I can’t even identify) combine to make a constantly developing instrumental part. It keeps going higher and higher like some form of euphoric synth cadenza. The sharp little bursts of harmonized ‘yeah’s and the dirty BRMC style bass playing makes this track just hot.
Songs like She Just Wont Believe Me (a mini 57 second wonder) and Mind Mischief make me think that this album is more personal. The sound is bigger, but the boy has come closer, and showed us a bit more heart flesh. He says a lot with very few words and lots of sounds, a feature which I respect. It’s weighty and sweet and all about feeling. The lyrics are heartbroken and clear, calling out that ‘she was only messing around,/Please, no more playing with my heart.’
A supremely catchy echo of Mind Mischief comes later in the album, in Feels Like We Only Go Backwards. This song is a phenomenon, which has even inspired tributes such as this:
You can find their music in myspace
Text by: Martha Rose
