Just over a week ago a brand new track from super producer Mark Ronson was released entitled ‘Daffodils’ that featured vocals from Tame Impala’s genius, Kevin Parker, causing an eruption of excitement across the globe.

The killer tune well and truly reignited our Tame Impala flame, we’ve since had the neo-psychedlic dream of 2012 Lonerism as well as the more rock orientated Innerspeaker of 2010 on heavy rotation in the Tone Deaf office, which lead us to the discussion, “What is going on with Tame Impala’s new record and what can we expect from it?”

Naturally, we wasted no time, scouring every possible source out there in search of information on the highly anticipated third release from the psychedelic mastermind that is Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker.

Join us as we break down the collected facts of what will surely be another classic Australian record.

Don’t Expect Any Mosh Riffs

“[It’s] probably gonna be less rock again and more electronic again, even more than the last one,” keyboardist Jay Watson told FasterLouder. “It’s gonna be awesome, everything he does is awesome.”

Even The Band Hasn’t Heard It

“I guess probably cause he knows someone like me’ll get drunk and then say stuff about it in interviews! Which is a very real possibility,” Watson continued. “It’s probably best I don’t say anything because I’ll get in more trouble than you will. I got to hear a lot of [Lonerism] as it was happening last time. But this time I don’t think anyone’s really heard it [all] except him and his girlfriend.”

It’s Gonna Be Eclectic

Earlier this year, Parker told The Vine, “I’ve been putting down ideas here and there. Ideas for different kinds of things. It’s been so sporadic. I get a flash of inspiration for something and it’s just completely different to what I was doing the day before. [It’s] to the point where… if all these songs are going to go on the same album, I’m gonna have to work out a way to make them fit together that won’t just seem like a weird mixtape.”

It’s Gonna Make Lonerism Look Like “Amateur Hour”

Parker didn’t mince words when speaking to The Vine, saying fans of the band’s sophomore album are bound to be doubly impressed. “I’m super excited about it. It’s so fresh in the process that I’m so into it,” said the frontman. “All I can think now is that it’ll make Lonerism look like amateur hour. From a sonic viewpoint anyway. Definitely. I’m just a lot better at creating sounds.”

Parker’s Approach To Songwriting Has Changed

“I’ve started not being afraid of looking at a song a different way,” Parker added. “I’ve always been so sacred with a song being the way it is in like the first five minutes you think of it. Like, y’know, it’s gotta have that melody because that was the melody when you first thought of it. I’m learning to suppress that instinct. Because in the end, it only closes the music off to amazing things that could happen if you just try. I’m trying to not think of a song too sacredly.”

Don’t Expect To Hear Any Of The Songs Before The Album’s Out

Speaking to Radio.com earlier this month, Parker suggested fans heading to see Tame Impala live shouldn’t expect to hear any new tunes. “I’m working all the time on new material, but I don’t like to play new songs before they are finished,” he said. “I like the idea of people hearing new songs once the production is complete. For me, that’s the biggest part of Tame Impala. It’s the whole production. I see myself as a producer. I prefer that to be the first experience people have with a song.”

The New Songs Will Interact With The Live Show

However, Parker did reveal that the new live show will be freaking awesome, telling Radio.com, “I have been working on a new light show for the set, though. I’ve found a new way to synchronize all the lights to what is happening in the songs, so it’s 100 times more interactive. I love the idea of the audio interacting with the visual.”

Parker Has No Idea When It Will Be Ready

“It’s hard for me to say,” he told Radio.com. “For me, I’m working on it all the time and I’m so involved in it, that it’s almost impossible to tell how far away it is from being finished. I’m always adding things to it and taking things away. It’s like a piece of clay, slowly shaping into something.”

“You could just stop at any moment and it would be finished. It would be something. It would be a sculpture or a bowl or whatever. And you could keep fingering it forever, and it wouldn’t necessarily be more finished or better. It is just up to you to decide when that piece of clay is something.”

Parker’s Production Skills Are Officially Next Level

“Each time I do an album, I have slightly more of a clue what I’m doing,” he told Radio.com. “I have a slightly more professional approach each time. It’s like I know how to use the tools in my shed. It’s like I’m a carpenter, and I know how to use my tools more intimately than before. Before I was a kid in a toolshed banging away until something happened. Now, I can see how a tool would work. That’s a pretty sketchy, terrible analogy.”

Get unlimited access to the coverage that shapes our culture.
to Rolling Stone magazine
to Rolling Stone magazine