On the morning of Friday, February 18th Kevin Parker, more commonly known as Tame Impala, released a new edition to his latest album release, The Slow Rush. His new edition was a B-side and remixed deluxe album which incorporated a mix of old content and debut songs. Deluxe albums typically include songs that were cut off the final version of an album release; Parker’s album included a new 18-minute radio version of “One More Year”, “The Boat I Row,” “No Choice,” and a remix of “Patience.” But is this album as good as we thought it would be?
Fan’s anticipation of new music releases from Parker has kept fans on their toes for years since his album Currents in 2015. The Slow Rush was officially released on February 14th of 2020, in which Parker released a total of 12 songs, with two music videos the following summer. After so many years, fans were surprised by the highly anticipated release. However, several fans were not too enthusiastic after the release because the album had drastically changed in style, going from psychedelic rock to alternative/indie. His new sound ranged all the way to what fans called “housey disco,” pointing at the new deluxe album. This release consists of 8 songs that explore genres Parker had not previously experimented with.
To start off the album, “The Boat I Row” is the first song on the tracklist, taking us to the artist’s personal life. Here Parker speaks about his life and the struggles of self-assurance. This song has taken Parker’s approach to music to the next level, making it slower and increasingly melodic. The second song of the album, “No choice,” was released as a single back in December of 2021. This song was somewhat similar to his old content, which got fans excited to see new songs in the style they were used to. The rest of the Deluxe album are just new versions of his initial Slow Rush releases. He also did a rap collaboration with Lil Yachty on “Breathe deeper,” an 18-minute radio version of “One More Year” that is built up of instrumentals, a remix of “Patience” and “Is it true,” and finally the Blood Orange mix of “Borderline.”
In retrospect, when looking at Parker’s journey with his music and musical discovery, he has won multiple awards and reached high rankings on the charts. His most popular songs are “The less I know the better,” “Let it happen’, “Elephant,” and many more. So was his recent release as good as we thought it would be? Fans were expecting way more from the artist since the album was advertised so much before the release. His sound changed completely, leaving fans in question, why Parker sounds like a pop artist rather than the psychedelic rock artist he used to be. Every artist goes through their own musical journey and discovery, taking their music to a different direction, but are we ever going to hear Parker’s old sound again? Take a listen and immerse yourself into an alternative/indie world created by the musical mastermind known as Tame Impala.
Words by Val Boren.
Graphics by Danna Macias.