The Slow Rush by Tame Impala
Their kaleidoscopic synesthesia in sonic tones of orange, blue, purple, and lime is familiar. The pulsating disco bass lines are less. Taken together, their journey from 2010 to 2020 feels more like 1967 to 1977. Psychedelia is the frame in which Tame Impala plays and the extent of it is how we can trace band proprietor Kevin Parker’s progression. Album over album we’ve seen more elements of dance coming in and stretches of The Slow Rush are groovy enough for Studio 54’s heyday. Listen to the flute come in at 1:19 on track 3 Borderline if you have any doubts of that.
The well-layered music carries tones with influences that deftly cross between genre and era: from the disco bass line on Borderline, to the synth on Posthumous Forgiveness, to the dream pop keys and reverb on Breathe Deeper. They keep expanding the breadth of sound that pours out of their speakers.
Along with those stylistic expansions, Tame Impala boldly revisits some audacious styles. Track 5 Posthumous Forgiveness is a two part song, like their epic 2015 single Let It Happen. The stop and go beat change maneuver is kind of rare, and a bit of a risk. On Posthumous Forgiveness, it’s a valiant gamble that doesn’t quite hit the mark, like the Raiders going for it on 4th and 10, and only getting 9. It feels like it could have worked better as two separate songs.
Kevin Parker continues to explore new corners of his now-familiar imagination. Past albums centered on emotions like love, heartbreak, and loneliness. The Slow Rush has some of the same, but there isn’t a consistent theme that threads throughout. When Parker identifies as an, “Introvert searching for inner peace,” it doesn’t feel like much. The speaker fuzz that previously made lyrics like that believable are a bit too clean now. And those lyrics aren’t in the context of a clear narrative flow. Granted, Parker isn’t trying to write the great Australian novel, it feels like a careless musing.
The sunny album straddles between being for a good time and being contemplative. Its lack of focus on either prevents it from fully achieving either. Its use of production in favor of instrumentation makes the edges too smooth. It explores a curiosity without exploring a wound or celebrating a win. And while it remains creative, fun and authentic, it’s missing a deep feeling. Whether an ache like previous albums or something more exuberant. Overall, I am happy for them — it seems like a content place to be. However, musically, I want to spend time somewhere less banal.
It is a solid album steeped in sounds I enjoyed on previous outputs, but doesn’t recapture the edge that previously lent Tame Impala rock star ethos. In fairness, if they maintained the same style, maybe this album would have felt tired. It’s a fate that’s befallen many bands unable to metamorphosize as their catalogs grow. Perhaps it’s wise to have avoided that by pushing into new spaces and eras. All considered, I will likely continue to replay The Slow Rush in the coming months, but in a year or two, I may forget about it.
Rating: 7.5/10
