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Tame Impala

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Tame Impala
Tame Impala performing in New York City in 2012
Tame Impala performing in New York City in 2012
Background information
OriginPerth, Western Australia
GenresPsychedelic rock, neo-psychedelia, dream pop, space rock
Years active2007–present
LabelsModular Recordings
MembersKevin Parker
Dominic Simper
Jay Watson
Cam Avery
Julien Barbagallo
Past membersNick Allbrook
Websitehttp://www.tameimpala.com/

Tame Impala (pronounced /tɛɪm ɪmˈpɑːlə/) is a band from Perth, Australia. It is the psychedelic rock project of Kevin Parker.[1] They are signed to Modular Records. The band came to prominence in 2010 with the release of their debut album Innerspeaker, and received critical acclaim for their 2012 album Lonerism. Their name refers to the impala, a medium sized antelope.[2] They like to see themselves as "a steady flowing psychedelic groove rock band that emphasizes dream-like melody."[3]

Biography

Early career

Tame Impala was formed from Kevin Parker's original blues/jazz/psychedelic band, the Dee Dee Dums. The Dee Dee Dums consisted of Parker (guitar) and Luke Epstein (drums). The band achieved second place at the 2005 AmpFest[4] and won third place that year in the state final of The Next Big Thing.[5] In October 2006 Epstein was replaced by drummer Sam Devenport, Epstein going on to play with Sugarpuss. The Dee Dee Dums went on to win the Western Australia state final of the National Campus Band Competition.[6] In late 2007 the band renamed to Tame Impala unveiling another new drummer and replacing the two-guitar attack for the more traditional guitar/bass/drums format. Devenport went on to pursue an acting career.[7]

In July 2008 the band signed a worldwide deal with independent label Modular Recordings.[8]

Tame Impala EP

The signing was soon followed by the release on their self-titled debut EP in September 2008.[9] Due to Kevin Parker's original artwork there was some confusion with the EP title and many believed it to be called Antares Mira Sun.[10][11] The artwork is an interpretation of a slide he saw in an astronomy lecture, which demonstrated the difference in size between the stars Antares, Mira and the Sun.

The cover art is meant to be a painting; an interpretation of a diagram, so those labels are just there to make the diagram make sense. But lo and behold, there were reviews coming out saying "And Tame Impala's new EP 'Antares, Mira, Sun".

— Kevin Parker[12]

Tame Impala went to number 1 on the Australian Independent Record Labels (AIR) Chart and number 10 on the ARIA Physical Singles Chart,[13] with three songs, "Desire Be, Desire Go", "Half Full Glass of Wine" and "Skeleton Tiger" which received national radio airplay on the Triple J Network.[14][15] Tours in 2008 included supports for You Am I, The Black Keys, Yeasayer and MGMT, as well as performances at Southbound, Meredith Music Festival, and Falls Festival, as well as a national headline tours in support of their EP. 2009 tours include a sold out 6 date 'Skeleton Tiger' national headline tour, a 5 date UK tour including Nevereverland UK, V Festival, Groovin The Moo and a stadium tour with The Living End and Gyroscope.

Tame Impala appeared on Triple J's Hottest 100 2008, their first appearance on the list, with "Half Full Glass of Wine" reaching number 75. The song is also on the Hottest 100 compilation.[16][17]

"Sundown Syndrome"

Tame Impala's first single, "Sundown Syndrome", was recorded at Toerag Studios in London, with recording engineer Liam Watson, whilst the band was there in March 2009.[18] "Sundown Syndrome" was premiered by Richard Kingsmill on his 2009 show on Triple J on Sunday 10 May. It was released in July 2009 on vinyl and electronically along with a cover of Blue Boy's "Remember Me".[19]

The band then headlined the inaugural "Rottofest" in August 2009, an annual comedy, film and music festival held off the coast of Western Australia on Rottnest Island. Following, they embarked on a national tour supporting the single through September and October 2009.[20]

"Sundown Syndrome" was included on the soundtrack of the Oscar-nominated film "The Kids Are All Right."

"Half Full Glass of Wine" was used in HBO's hit TV series Entourage as the closing song for an episode.

Tame Impala appeared at Big Day Out in early 2010, performing alongside bands Muse, The Mars Volta, Kasabian and Rise Against, among others.

"Remember Me" appeared at number 78 on Triple J's Hottest 100 for 2009.

Innerspeaker

Tame Impala's debut album, Innerspeaker, was released on 21 May 2010. In the U.K. its official release date was 28 June, however iTunes accidentally made it available to buy immediately (not pre-order) on 12 May. The album was released in the United States on 8 June to general and critical acclaim. Pitchfork named it Best New Music.[21]

In an interview with Triple J talking about the album's recent nomination for the J Award, Parker stated that they have secretly been recording a new album. "Jay and I have been recording pretty compulsively and album number two is nearing potential completion already and I'm so excited about it that I'm having trouble keeping myself from telling you all about it." This comes as a big surprise as this statement was released only months after their debut album, Innerspeaker, was released.

The band has been busy touring during mid-2010, with their 'Innerspeaker album tour' commencing on 13 May 2010, as the opening band for MGMT's 2010 American tour. The band returned to Australia to play at Splendour in the Grass festival, which was followed by a European Tour in July (including an appearance at the Reading Festival) and a national Australian tour in October. In November they returned to the UK and Europe for a fifteen date tour, including their largest London headline show to date which was attended by Noel Gallagher, Tom Meighan, Sergio Pizzorno, Noel Fielding, Alexa Chung and Alison Mosshart,[22] the band then went on to the United States and Canada for twenty headline dates including sold out shows in Toronto, New York, LA and San Francisco. They also received four 2010 ARIA Music Awards nominations which include, 'Album of the Year' and 'Best Rock Album' for Innerspeaker, 'Best Group' and also 'Breakthrough Artist'.[23]

On 29 November 2010, Innerspeaker won Australian youth-oriented radio network Triple J's highest honor, winning the J Award for Album of the Year.[24]

Lonerism

Tame Impala performing live in Brussels in 2012

On 7 December 2011, Kevin Parker began mixing the second Tame Impala album, Lonerism, with producer Dave Fridmann.[25]

On 2 March 2012, Tame Impala posted via Facebook that the new album was "finished, mixed, mastered, mooged, broinged, and beeped". Jay Watson expected it to be released in mid-2012, but it was later released in October 2012. Kevin Parker said that Lonerism "represents a departure from his previous work by incorporating an expanded sonic palette, more emotional song writing, and a more pronounced narrative perspective." It was created in a similar set up as Innerspeaker, being that Kevin Parker wrote and recorded the majority of the album by himself at his home in Perth, Australia.[26]

Parts of the recording had taken place in Parker's home studio in France, as well as Parker producing and playing on the self-titled dream pop album by Melody's Echo Chamber which is the project of French singer Melody Prochet. As a result, one of the tracks is titled "Endors Toi", which roughly translates from French to English as "go to sleep" or "hypnotise yourself". The album cover is also a photo taken by Parker himself, with additional editing by graphic designer Leif Podhajsky who created the album art for Innerspeaker, of the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris, France. This image ties into the themes of isolation of Lonerism with a metal gate separating the viewer from the people in the Gardens.[27] It also features the songs "Apocalypse Dreams" and "Elephant", which are some of the first songs that Parker has co-written with Jay Watson.

On 27 June 2012, the band released an album teaser on their Facebook page. The band released the song "Apocalypse Dreams" for free download on 7 July 2012. The first single "Elephant" was released in July 2012.[28] The album was released on 5 October in Australia, 8 October in the United Kingdom and 9 October in the United States. StillinRock described it as the best album of the year.[29]

"Feels Like We Only Go Backwards" was released as the second single.[30]

In November 2012, Lonerism won the 2012 J Award for Australian Album of the Year. They also won it for their debut album Innerspeaker in 2010. This makes them the first band to have won the J Award more than once, and the first band to have won a J Award for every album that they have ever released. They followed this achievement up in January 2013 by winning the Rolling Stone award for 2012 Album of the Year again, after they also won it in 2011 for Innerspeaker. It was also announced as album of the year in the UK by NME magazine.

Lonerism was voted number #1 overall in Rolling Stone, Triple J, NME, Filter Magazine, Urban Outfitters, FasterLouder and Obscure Sound's 2012 Album of the Year polls.

"Elephant" and "Feels Like We Only Go Backwards" appeared at #7 and #9 respectively in Triple J's Hottest 100 for 2012.[31]

The band began an international tour in 2012 through 2013, supported by The Growl. They are slated to play major festivals, such as Coachella, Sasquatch Festival and appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.[32][33]

"Elephant" was used in advertisements for the Blackberry Z10,[34] and in the second season finale of the HBO show Girls.[35]

On May 18th, 2013, it was announced via Facebook that Nick Allbrook would leave the band to focus on other musical endeavors, and that Cam Avery of Pond and The Growl would take his place. Allbrook played his final gig with the band on their last Australian tour date of 2013 at Perth's Belvoir Amphitheatre, the same venue Allbrook played his first gig with the band in 2008. As a departing farewell the band played a cover of Outkast's Prototype.[36]

Band members

Live

  • Kevin Parker – vocals, guitar & kazoo (2007–present)
  • Jay "Gumby" Watson – drums & backing vocals (2007–2011), synth, backing vocals & occasional additional guitar (2012–present)
  • Dominic Simper – bass (2007–2010), guitar & synth (2010–present)
  • Cam Avery – bass (2013–present)
  • Julien Barbagallo – drums & backing vocals (2012–present)

Studio

  • Kevin Parker – vocals, guitar, bass, drums, keys (plays all instruments on almost all recordings)
  • Jay Watson – drums, keys, guitar
  • Dominic Simper – percussion, bass, guitar, effects

Past members

  • Nick "Paisley Adams" Allbrook – guitar & keys (2009–2010), bass (2010–2013)

Discography

Albums

Year Album details Peak chart positions
AUS[37] BEL IRE NED UK US
2010 Innerspeaker[38] 4 73 — 83 144 —
2012 Lonerism[40][41]
  • Release: 5 October 2012
  • Label: Modular Recordings
 4 38 39 58 14 34

Live albums

EPs

Singles

Remixes

Collaborations

Awards and nominations

WAMI Awards

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2009[58] Tame Impala Most Popular Act Nominated
Most Popular Live Act Nominated
Favourite Newcomer Won
Most Promising New Act Won
Best Rock Act Nominated
Tame Impala EP Most Popular Single/EP Won
"Half Full Glass of Wine" Most Popular Music Video Nominated
Kevin Parker Best Male Vocalist Nominated
Dominic Simper Best Bassist Nominated
Jay Watson Best Drummer Nominated
2010 Tame Impala Best Rock Act[59] Nominated
2011[60] Tame Impala Most Popular Act Won
Most Popular Live Act Won
Best Rock Act Won
Innerspeaker Most Popular Album Nominated
Kevin Parker Best Guitarist Won

ARIA Awards

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2010 Tame Impala Best Group Nominated
Breakthrough Artist Nominated
Innerspeaker Album of the Year Nominated
Best Rock Album Nominated
Best Cover Art Nominated

J Awards

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2010 Innerspeaker Australian Album of the Year[61] Won
2012 Lonerism Australian Album of the Year[62] Won

Rolling Stone Awards

Rolling Stone Australia Awards recognise contributions to popular culture in Australia and New Zealand.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2011 Innerspeaker Album of the Year[63] Won
2012 Lonerism Album of the Year[64] Won

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters".[65]

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2011 Kevin Parker Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year[66] Nominated

EG Music Awards

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2012 "Elephant" Best Song[67] Won

References

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  2. ^ "Tame Impala". FasterLouder.com. 4 November 2008.
  3. ^ Merrett, Rhys (27 November 2008). "Tame Impala". Luno.
  4. ^ "Tame Impala (aka Dee Dee Dums)". Ampfest. Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  5. ^ "NBT Past Winners". Next Big Thing (Healthway). Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  6. ^ "Dee Dee Dums win Campus Band title". FasterLouder.com.au. 8 October 2006. Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  7. ^ "UWA NCBC Entrants 2009". UWA Student Guild. Retrieved 14 September 2009.
  8. ^ Cashmere, Paul (7 July 2008). "Tame Impala Sign With Modular". Undercover.com.au. Retrieved 19 February 2009.
  9. ^ New Australasian Releases. September 2008 ARIA
  10. ^ "Tame Impala: ANTARES MIRA SUN". Merge Magazine.
  11. ^ Carr, Matthew (17 November 2008). "Tame Impala - Antares, Mira, Sun". FasterLouder.com.
  12. ^ "MTV Exclusive Interview with Tame Impala". MTV Australia. 11 February 2009. Retrieved 19 February 2009.
  13. ^ "Top 50 Physical Singles Chart". ARIA. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
  14. ^ "hitlist (by artist): triple j music". ABC. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
  15. ^ "Tame Impala @JPLay". JPlay. Retrieved 19 February 2009.
  16. ^ Mengel, Noel (26 January 2009). "Kings of Leon top Triple J's Hottest 100". Courier Mail. Retrieved 19 February 2009. [dead link]
  17. ^ "Triple JHottest 100 - 2008". Triple J. Retrieved 19 February 2009.
  18. ^ "Tame Impala tour". WA Today. 21 July 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  19. ^ "Mod Blog". Modular Recordings. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
  20. ^ "Mod Blog". Modular Recordings. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
  21. ^ Best New Music Pitchfork . Retrieved 2010-05-28.
  22. ^ NME Daily Gossip NME . Retrieved 2010-10-29.
  23. ^ 2010 ARIA Nominations Announced Take40 Australia (mcm entertainment). Retrieved 2010-09-29.
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  25. ^ "Dave Fridmann". Dave Fridmann. 7 December 2011.
  26. ^ "New Tame Impala Album Due Mid 2012". musicfeeds.com.au. {{cite web}}: Text "20 February 2012" ignored (help)
  27. ^ "Lonerism Album Cover". Leif Podhajksy. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  28. ^ "Tame Impala Announce New Album, Share Track | News". Pitchfork. 8 July 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
  29. ^ "Actualité musicale : Rock, Pop, indie.: Album Review : Tame Impala - Lonerism (Rock Psyche)". Still in Rock. 26 February 2004. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
  30. ^ "The Taming Of The New ♫ Interviews at". Themusic.com.au. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
  31. ^ Hottest 100 - 2012 | triple j
  32. ^ Tame Impala
  33. ^ The Growl
  34. ^ BlackBerry Z10 Commercial Ad - YouTube
  35. ^ Girls Season 2 Soundtrack List (2013) | Girls
  36. ^ "Nick Allbrook leaves Tame Impala". Music Blogged. 18 May 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  37. ^ "ARIA Album Charts". Retrieved 30 May 2010.
  38. ^ "Modular Spews". Modular People. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
  39. ^ "official site". Retrieved 8 March 2010.
  40. ^ "Tame Impala 'In the Studio' feature".
  41. ^ "Tame Impala JMag 'Studio Rumblings' feature".
  42. ^ "'InnerSpeaker' Is Out Now In Australia". tameimpala.com. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
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  46. ^ "Sundown Syndrome/Remember Me (7" Vinyl)". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  47. ^ "Solitude Is Bliss : Modular". Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  48. ^ "Lucidity Single (iTunes Store)".
  49. ^ "Expectation single".
  50. ^ "Why Won't You Make Up Your Mind? single (iTunes Store)".
  51. ^ Aarom Wilson. "The Taming of the New". Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  52. ^ "Mammalian Locomotion single by Abbe May (iTunes Store)".
  53. ^ "Tron: Legacy Reconfigured - Daft Punk". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  54. ^ "Canyons – The Lovemore EP". Discogs.
  55. ^ a b "Keep Your Dreams by Canyons (iTunes Store)".
  56. ^ "The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends".
  57. ^ "Fleetwood Mac Tribute".
  58. ^ "WAMI Awards 2009". WAMI. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  59. ^ "WAMI Awards 2010". WAMI. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  60. ^ "WAMI Awards 2011". WAMI. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  61. ^ "J Awards 2010". abc.net.au. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  62. ^ "J Awards 2012". Twitter. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  63. ^ "Rolling Stone Awards 2011". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  64. ^ "Rolling Stone Awards 2012". Sky News. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
  65. ^ "APRA History". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). Retrieved 17 January 2011.
  66. ^ "Nominations > Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year – 2011". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  67. ^ "EG Music Awards 2012". FasterLouder. Retrieved 21 November 2012.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tame_Impala&oldid=556983456"