5 Takeaways From Tame Impala's New Album Deadbeat

"Tame Impala were once a record collector's idea of a rock band. Then they were a rock band that was one guy and that one guy was also a record collector. 2015's Currents took that proposition as far as it could go, and when Kevin Parker dropped End of Summer as the lead single from his fifth studio album, Deadbeat, something else became apparent: Every crate-digger eventually finds his way to the dancefloor."

"Deadbeat is Parker's electronic and dance album, but it's also his new father album, as his first daughter was born the year after the pre-pandemic The Slow Rush. As such, he throws in some dadly nods to Family Guy and Pablo Escobar, while still treading familiar emotional territory for Tame Impala: jealousy, paralysis, and social anxiety. Parker digs into his psyche not necessarily through lyrics but by paying homage to the music he ostensibly loves,"

Kevin Parker steers Tame Impala into full electronic and dance territory on Deadbeat while reflecting new fatherhood. The album blends nods to Jeff Mills, the Beatles, DJ Khaled and Rihanna with personal themes of jealousy, paralysis, and social anxiety. Deadbeat opens with a raw demo of Parker singing over a house piano riff that recurs as a motif, foregrounding room sound and imperfect production. Off-the-cuff moments, such as a murmured expletive on the single Loser, remain in the final mixes. Parker balances meticulous craft with greater comfort in letting the seams of his recordings show.

Read at pitchfork.com