Album: Lonerism
Artist: Tame Impala
Born: Perth, Western Australia
Released: October 2012
Genre: Psychedelia
Psych music is rarely out of fashion, with bands like Spiritualized and Flaming Lips carrying the torch in recent decades, but Tame Impala have spearheaded a very recent explosion in psychedelia, especially in their native Australia. The dense, glam rock-inspired Elephant is the song that really raised Tame Impala's profile in 2012, but they had already won over new fans with 2010 LP, Innerspeaker. Solitude Is Bliss was a particular highlight on that first record, featuring some inspired use of guitar phasing and blissed out vocals. Although the fuzzy, hazy stoner grooves are deeply indebted to the psychedelic rock of the 60 & 70s, as well as the shoegaze atmospherics of My Bloody Valentine, Tame Impala do manage to create a unique, modern sound on Lonerism. The essential new element is the influence of electronic music, which helps to generate a more propulsive, assured sound. Standard rock song structures of verse-chorus-verse are jettisoned in favour of abstract, kaleidoscopic soundscapes. However, the link to classic rock remains in Tame Impala's love of instrumental solos, and Todd Rundgren's virtuoso 70s albums were apparently a huge source of inspiration for Kevin Parker when it came to creating Lonerism. Parker is very much the band's creative force, starring as lead vocalist and songwriter, as well as producer of this album.
Along with Elephant, Feels Like We Only Go Backwards was the other single to be released from the album, a superb showcase for Parker's stunning psychedelic rock voice and his gift for melody. Other highlights are the dense but blissful Mind Mischief, which benefits from the production input of Dave Fridmann (famous for his work with Mercury Rev and The Flaming Lips), and the Pink Floyd-inspired organ sound at the end of Keep On Lying. I also like Apocalypse Dreams, which mixes a soulful groove with prog rock guitars, and the stunning melody of Why Won't They Talk to Me?, which contains Syd Barrett style whimsy ("Lonely old me / whoops-a-daisy / I thought I was happy"). This song, and others, touch on Lonerism's key theme of isolation, reflected in the album art (a photo looking into the Jardins du Luxembourg in Paris, which gives the sense of being locked out). In reality, Tame Impala are in good company and remain at the forefront of a revival in psychedelic music, with bands like Temples, Grumbling Fur, Mac Demarco, Fat White Family, Goat, Alexander Tucker, Hookworms and Wooden Shjips all part of this upsurge. From 13th Floor Elevators and Jefferson Airplane to Primal Scream, Spiritualized and The Flaming Lips, psychedelic music has always been a tough genre to pin down precisely. Much of the time it's in the eye of the beholder, and Tame Impala are the best of the modern bunch for me.
Psych music is rarely out of fashion, with bands like Spiritualized and Flaming Lips carrying the torch in recent decades, but Tame Impala have spearheaded a very recent explosion in psychedelia, especially in their native Australia. The dense, glam rock-inspired Elephant is the song that really raised Tame Impala's profile in 2012, but they had already won over new fans with 2010 LP, Innerspeaker. Solitude Is Bliss was a particular highlight on that first record, featuring some inspired use of guitar phasing and blissed out vocals. Although the fuzzy, hazy stoner grooves are deeply indebted to the psychedelic rock of the 60 & 70s, as well as the shoegaze atmospherics of My Bloody Valentine, Tame Impala do manage to create a unique, modern sound on Lonerism. The essential new element is the influence of electronic music, which helps to generate a more propulsive, assured sound. Standard rock song structures of verse-chorus-verse are jettisoned in favour of abstract, kaleidoscopic soundscapes. However, the link to classic rock remains in Tame Impala's love of instrumental solos, and Todd Rundgren's virtuoso 70s albums were apparently a huge source of inspiration for Kevin Parker when it came to creating Lonerism. Parker is very much the band's creative force, starring as lead vocalist and songwriter, as well as producer of this album.
Along with Elephant, Feels Like We Only Go Backwards was the other single to be released from the album, a superb showcase for Parker's stunning psychedelic rock voice and his gift for melody. Other highlights are the dense but blissful Mind Mischief, which benefits from the production input of Dave Fridmann (famous for his work with Mercury Rev and The Flaming Lips), and the Pink Floyd-inspired organ sound at the end of Keep On Lying. I also like Apocalypse Dreams, which mixes a soulful groove with prog rock guitars, and the stunning melody of Why Won't They Talk to Me?, which contains Syd Barrett style whimsy ("Lonely old me / whoops-a-daisy / I thought I was happy"). This song, and others, touch on Lonerism's key theme of isolation, reflected in the album art (a photo looking into the Jardins du Luxembourg in Paris, which gives the sense of being locked out). In reality, Tame Impala are in good company and remain at the forefront of a revival in psychedelic music, with bands like Temples, Grumbling Fur, Mac Demarco, Fat White Family, Goat, Alexander Tucker, Hookworms and Wooden Shjips all part of this upsurge. From 13th Floor Elevators and Jefferson Airplane to Primal Scream, Spiritualized and The Flaming Lips, psychedelic music has always been a tough genre to pin down precisely. Much of the time it's in the eye of the beholder, and Tame Impala are the best of the modern bunch for me.
Comments