Album Review: Tame Impala - Lonerism

Breathy “Gotta be above it” vocals that sound like motivational phrases repeated by a jogger negotiating a steep incline open Tame Impala's second album. These opening moments sound more like what you'd expect from Unkle and you'll instantly realise this ain't no background music. Be Above It takes off and soars – you'll feel like a hang glider. Endors Toi, which evokes For Your Love by The Yardbirds, introduces glistening keys. The screech of hands racing up and down fretboards remains and Kevin Parker's beseeching vocals sound simultaneously reassuring and exhilarating.   

There's lyrical contemplation – “Am I getting closer?/Will I ever get there?/Does it even matter?” – and Parker's compositions are like fractals, although the songs somehow manage to sound instantly memorable rather than deliberately tricky or alienating. Why Won't They Talk To Me harks back to the unrequited longing of Why Won't You Make Up Your Mind? but this time Parker's persona sounds more self-assured.

That dirty, thunderous Elephant riff perfectly complements Parker's purposely-metrical cadence: “… like an el-e-phant shaking its big grey trunk for the hell of it.” Whispered warnings (“Here it comes”), angelic “aaaaah”s and approving “yeah”s all contribute to this sonic masterpiece. (Heard the Todd Rundgren remix? Do it!) There are sounds throughout Lonerism that conjure shooting stars or slow motion boomerangs retracing flight paths. There are also chuckling schoolkids and looped Furby conversations wouldn't sound out of place.  

Many line-up changes have been implemented to accurately translate Tame Impala's material for the live arena. Beats me how these musicians are such brilliant players on whatever instrument they may choose to switch to! Lonerism's a cohesive body of work that's gonna be hard to top. But, then again, so was Innerspeaker, which is what makes this album such a mammoth achievement.