Album Review: Deadbeat

Afia Khan reviews Deadbeat, the latest electro, psychedelic fusion from Aussie indie legend Tame Impala.

Tame Impala, the psychedelic music project by Australian multi-instrumentalist and singer Kevin Parker, has released a new album after five years.

Titled ‘Deadbeat’, the fifth studio album is an ode to the highs and lows experienced at a rave. 

Recorded in the Californian coastal town of Montecito and at his studio Wave House in Yallingup, Western Australia, it took Parker two years to create Deadbeat.

The fifth studio album from band Tame Impala, 'Deadbeat', takes the band in a new direction. (Image: Supplied)

In an interview with radio presenter Zane Lowe, Parker shared how he wanted to make a techno album for his own spiritual being. 

“It was obvious that I was gonna do something electronic,” Parker said to Lowe, “to me, it just sorta made sense.”

Tame Impala is known for hit albums ‘Lonerism’, ‘Currents’, and ‘The Slow Rush’.

The album cover could be interpreted as a tribute to Parker’s newly found fatherhood, as he holds his daughter Peach. 

Deadbeat starts off with self-deprecation, a classic theme seen throughout Tame Impala’s music. 

Despite saying, “never again”, Parker is back to his ‘[My] Old Ways’. What starts off as a reflective piano melody ends up becoming a monologue dressed up in a tempo that is fast and upbeat. As he delves deeper into his feelings, the tempo quickens. 

With elements of progressive techno, the ambience pulsates throughout his looming guilt of not reaching out to loved ones. ‘Dracula’, the third single which was released a month ago, explores the comparisons Parker makes of himself to famous men who master deception - Dracula, Mr Charisma, and Pablo Escobar. 

In the fourth track ‘Loser’, Parker gives into the chaos he has gotten himself into. Unlike the first three, this track contains the psychedelic indie he clearly has mastered throughout his discography. The fast tempo returns in ‘Oblivion’ and with it a new realisation that things aren’t going the way they should be. Parker needs a change in scenery, and this is reflected in the reggae undertones he first introduces into Deadbeat. As the synths deepen, so does his realisation that that is “Not My World”. There is a raspy baritone similar to that of The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas.

'Deadbeat' is akin to a rave, with all its rapid highs and lows. (Image: Supplied)

The tempo slows down as Parker enters euphoria. In ‘Piece of Heaven’, there is a harmony that incites a fuzzy feeling within, hinting at the start of something magical. 

Tame Impala gained massive notoriety in 2015 with the release of his album Currents, featuring the winner of the Triple J Hottest 100 of the Decade, "The Less I Know the Better".

Early in his career, Parker also played drums for the psychedelic rock band Pond, from WA, with whom he remains close friends; two other members of Pond assisted Parker with his fifth album, bringing that psychedelic energy to the forefront of 'Deadbeat'.

If there’s one thing Parker wants you to take away from ‘Obsolete’, it’s that “talk is cheap.” With blends of '90s funk and R&B, the song explores the second-guessing that follows with the uncertainty of wanting someone. 

What do you get out of an ‘Ethereal Connection’? Techno that screams rave. With its feverish tempo set to meet Parker’s restlessness, the track gets heavier and quicker by every minute. It incites feelings of ecstasy; it gets your blood pumping. As the outro slows down, so does the feeling, just like a drug. 

For fans longing for the psychedelic rock from the Lonerism days, there’s ‘See You On Monday (You’re Lost).’ Though it's more electric compared to his previous work, the 10^th track of the album feels like a comedown from the euphoria felt in the previous track. The tempo has slowed down, yet the never-ending thoughts keep replaying like a broken car stereo. As Parker becomes more aware of being an ‘Afterthought’, the tempo speeds up, reminding him to continue dancing through the uncertainties.

Nearing the ‘End of Summer’, which was also the first single released in July, Parker leaves an aftertaste of techno done the Tame Impala way. 

With 56 minutes, Tame Impala has managed to create a sensory wonderland for listeners through Deadbeat. It’s spontaneous, freeing, and in the moment. 

Deadbeat is proof that Tame Impala will turn any genre into a playground.