Currents

Psychedelic rock/pop. The first time I listened to this album, I have to admit, I was kind of disappointed. It didn’t have the immediate impact on me that Tame Impala’s last album did. But after listening to it again, holy god, have I changed my mind. This is awesome. Compared to Lonerism, it’s a dancier album—catchier. And when I say catchy, I mean catchy—as in, don’t listen to this album if you don’t to take the risk of being addicted to it for days.

Tame Impala goes on a bit of a journey in this album. Singer breaks up with his girlfriend, assures her that both of them will ultimately be better off (a bit condescending but whatever), falls in love with someone else. I love how they capture the optimism which is part of a breakup—it isn’t all a tragedy, there’s usually a ray of hope.

Highly recommended: 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10. Watch for the FCCs.

1) “Let It Happen” (7:45): High intensity. Passionate. Sprawling, bold, very catchy, with a cool long build beginning at around the four-minute mark. This is awesome if you can stand poppy stuff.
2) “Nangs” (1:42): Heavy reverb, quiet voices. Beat drops about halfway through. Kind of a transition track, I guess.
3) “The Moment” (4:10): Springy little beat. Not as hyperbolic or over-the-top as track 1. “It’s getting closer.” Ludicrously catchy.
4) “Yes I’m Changing” (4:29) (FCC: BULLSHIT): Smooth, slower. Breakup song. Things aren’t working anymore, but he’s reflective, hopeful. Maybe things are about to get better.
5) “Eventually” (5:15): Midtempo. Big, slow, pounding hook. Breakup song. I want to say that it’s poppier because of some of the electronic flourishes, but it’s too slow to be really poppy.
6) “Gossip” (0:55): Transition track. Ignore this.
7) “The Less I Know the Better” (3:40): Ambling pace. Great friendly sound, funky little beat.
8) “Past Life” (3:50): Weird deep voice sets it off. I guess we enter Tame Impala’s mind?
9) “Disciples” (1:47): Singing in the higher falsetto voice. Dancey in an old-school way. Wish it were developed a bit longer.
10) “’Cause I’m a Man” (4:00): (FCC: FUCKING) Great steady pace—relies heavily on the voice. Flirty.
11) “Reality in Motion” (4:10): Slower pace, not as complex of a song.
12) “Love/Paranoia” (3:10): (FCC: FUCKING) Kind of stripped down, which I don’t think is Tame Impala’s strength. Not as memorable.
13) “New Person, Same Old Mistakes” (5:50): (FCC: SHIT) Really heavy with a lot of bass. Pretty cool. Big sonic shift to a higher register about halfway through.

--Mr. Tumnus