Kevin Parker, better known as Tame Impala, is a singer songwriter recognizable for his eccentric personality and psychedelic rock music. The Australian artist has been in the music scene for around 17 years, including countless successful albums like his 2017 album, “Currents” along with many other successful albums such as “Lonerism,” “The Slow Rush,” and the less mentioned “Innerspeaker.” His new album, however, is significantly less critically acclaimed and has faced negativity. I will unpack the disappointment while trying to bring light to the better parts of the album.
Contrary to his other albums, “Deadbeat” aims for a simplistic approach, going for less over-the-top songs. This is in stark contrast to his most well-known album, “Currents,” which included maximalist melodies with layers of unique sounds and instruments. While not necessarily bad, “Deadbeat” is far less thought provoking compared to Tame Impala’s previous works. Simplicity can be good, in fact it’s been exceptional in the past. One of my favorite songs, “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards,” is simple at its core, but was enhanced using production effects. The song, although not particularly complex, does a good job of balancing its simple melody and chord progression creating a gratifying listen.
Here’s what irked me about the new album: it was almost too simple, and departed from Tame Impala’s previous style. I found myself waiting for a “stand-out” song but they all seemed to blend together. The minimalist approach while diverging from his usual style left me feeling lost while listening to the songs. Like many Tame Impala tracks, the songs start off with simple chord progressions and slowly become more complex, resulting in a satisfying peak or beat drop. Several of the songs followed this formula, but as I mentioned earlier, they didn’t have much to differentiate them from each other.
The album suffered from its obsession with simplicity. This theme was prevalent as the album includes significantly less instruments per song. This generally isn’t bad, but he’s known for including lots of variety, giving his songs a certain distinctive quality. This wasn’t “Deadbeat’s” demise, however, the album was intentionally oversimplified in an effort to make it seem more genuine. Unfortunately, I feel that this led to all of the negativity surrounding “Deadbeat.” I can appreciate the minimalism, but personally I enjoy his complex songs more.
On a more positive note, I’d like to shed some light on the songs that I really enjoyed listening to. “Loser,” although very understated, makes up for it with its extremely catchy beat and synthesized strings. As a pianist, I also really enjoyed “My Old Ways,” as it opened with an aged piano and had a satisfying climax while frequently mixing things up. These songs achieve something close enough to Impala’s popular simplified songs, while also accomplishing the modesty Tame Impala was looking for.
Even though some may see this album as a failure, I don’t see it as such. I really like Tame Impala’s music and not every album will be a hit. Despite straying away from his norm, music is completely subjective and trying new things can help an artist develop their own style. Overall, I don’t think the album was the best, but I also don’t think it’s the worst.
