Tame Impala

2007–2008: Early career

The origins of Tame Impala can be found in the Perth music scene. Musician Kevin Parker played in a number of bands, one being the Dee Dee Dums, a rock duo that consisted of Parker (guitar) and Luke Epstein (drums). Tame Impala emerged in 2007 as a home-recording project created by Parker, who posted a number of tracks on Myspace. This generated interest from a number of labels, and eventually he signed a worldwide deal with the independent Modular Recordings in July 2008. To transfer these recordings to a live setting, Parker enlisted the help of Dominic Simper (bass) and Jay Watson (drums), and they began playing at local gigs. Kevin Parker came up with the name of the band as a reflection of the music's theme. He felt the name...

Musical style

Parker's decision to make the music for Tame Impala in the studio by himself is a result of his liking "the kind of music that is the result of one person constructing an awesome symphony of sound. You can layer your own voice 700 times for half a second if you want, and I just love that kind of music". However, Parker has to translate his music to a live setting with the band, and the band doesn't play the songs until they have been recorded. "The only jamming that's done as a band is done a long time after the song is recorded for the sake of the live environment. It's good for us, because we can take a song that's been recorded and do what we want to it: slow it down, speed it up, make it 10 seconds or 10 minutes long. It gives us a lot...

Influences

Tame Impala's music is heavily influenced by late 1960s and early 1970s psychedelic rock. Parker has stated that he has a "fetish for extremely sugary pop music" from such artists as Britney Spears and Kylie Minogue. Parker also enjoys "fucked-up explosive cosmic music" in the vein of The Flaming Lips, with whom Tame Impala collaborated on the track "Children of the Moon"; the song appeared on the band's 2012 collaborative album The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends.

Borderline

"Borderline" is a song by the Australian psychedelic music project Tame Impala. It is the third track on the 2020 studio album The Slow Rush, and was released as a single on 12 April 2019 through Modular Recordings.

The song was written by Kevin Parker, who performed all instruments and vocals. The song was influenced by yacht rock and disco, and the lyrics explore nihilism and insecurity.

Background and production

After spending extensive time working on Tame Impala's third album Currents (2015), Kevin Parker decided to shift away from being a perfectionist towards more spontaneity, adding that if he "finds something that sounds good I should just do it and not think about it". "Borderline" was released as a single in 2019 but was reworked and re-released for multiple reasons. For one, Parker said he had accidentally made the bassline too quiet, and also wanted to change a few other elements of the song, as he had been pressured to release it prematurely. He elaborated: "The way I describe it is the way it sounds now is the way I was hearing it when I released it the first time. So for me, the drums sounded just heaps more hard-hitting. And it was...

Critical reception

In a mention of the band's Saturday Night Live performance, Music Feeds called the song a "groovy, toe-tapping lounge chiller". Triple J ranked it 18th in the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2019.

New Person, Same Old Mistakes

"New Person, Same Old Mistakes" is a song by Australian psychedelic music project Tame Impala. It was released on 17 July 2015 as the closing track for their third studio album Currents (2015).

Background and production

In a 2025 interview with Zane Lowe, Kevin Parker stated that "New Person, Same Old Mistakes" was actually a last minute addition to Currents as well as the song "Elephant" from Lonerism.

Covers and legacy

Barbadian singer Rihanna covered the song for her 2016 album Anti retitling her version "Same Ol’ Mistakes". Parker said about the cover, "We’re all really happy with how the song turned out, love it!". Parker gave the cover his blessing stating that he imagined “a female R&B voice” singing the song in the first place. Parker also added, “I guess it comes back to appreciating ideas being malleable and being able to imagine music in different worlds".

The Less I Know The Better

"The Less I Know the Better" is a song released by the Australian music project Tame Impala on 29 November 2015 as the fourth and final single from their third studio album, Currents. The song's accompanying music video mixes hand-drawn animation with live action and takes place in a high school, especially the gym and locker room, where a male basketball player suffers a broken heart.

Background and composition

Parker stated that "The Less I Know the Better" originated from his love of disco:

Critical reception

"The Less I Know the Better" received widespread acclaim from both critics and the public. The track was widely praised for its modern psychedelic production, catchy melody, and emotionally impactful lyrics about jealousy and romantic disillusionment. Critics highlighted the funk and disco influences, with the song's prominent bass groove considered one of its standout features. Ian Cohen, from Pitchfork, noted the song's similarities to Michael Jackson's albums Thriller and Bad. Triple J, from ABC News (Australia), described the track as brilliant.

Music video

The official music video for the song was uploaded on 29 November 2015 to the group's Vevo channel. The video follows a male high school basketball player lusting after a cheerleader who soon begins a relationship with the team's gorilla mascot (named "Trevor", a reference to the lyric "She was holding hands with Trevor" in the song). The music video was filmed by the Barcelona-based creative collective and directors known as Canada. The two primary lovebirds in the video are played by Spanish actors: the cheerleader is portrayed by actress Laia Manzanares; the basketball player by actor Albert Baró.

Why Won't You Make Up Your Mind?

"Why Won't You Make Up Your Mind?" is a song by the Australian music project Tame Impala, released as a single in 2011. It was recorded during the sessions for the Innerspeaker album in 2009, and released as the fourth single from that album.

The single features artwork from Australian artist Leif Podhajsky, who also created the artwork for Innerspeaker and the follow-up Lonerism.

Composition

"Why Won't You Make Up Your Mind?" was written by Kevin Parker in the key of F major in a 44 time signature. It is based around four repeating barre chords of A minor, B-flat major, E minor and F major, played on electric guitar, to create a trance-like, hypnotic and spacious atmosphere, while the bass is played rhythmically to fill in the guitar spaces.

Music video

While an official music video was never made, Pitchfork Media created an unofficial video. It features the band playing a rendition of "Why Won't You Make Up Your Mind?" in a woodland. It was shot in 3D and features strong 3D effects and warbly images that make use of the extra dimension.

Feels Like We Only Go Backwards

"Feels Like We Only Go Backwards" is a song by Australian psychedelic rock band Tame Impala. It is the seventh track on their 2012 album Lonerism, and was released as its second single on 1 October 2012.

The single features artwork from Australian artist Leif Podhajsky, who also created the artwork for their first album, Innerspeaker. In an interview with Rick Rubin on the podcast Broken Record, Kevin Parker said he wrote "Feels Like We Only Go Backwards" after being inspired by "Walk in the Park" by Beach House.

Music video

The music video was directed by Joseph Pelling and Becky Sloan, best known as creators of Don't Hug Me I'm Scared web series. The music video consists of psychedelic clay animation.

Critical reception

The song was voted on many year end best of lists in 2012. Pitchfork named it the 7th best song of 2012, and said of the track; "it will blow your brain back to its most purely joyous and least cynical recesses." The same website also ranked it #192 on their list of the 200 best songs of the 2010s. It placed ninth on the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2012.