We heard recently that after Laneway next year, Tame Impala will be going on a hiatus. What we didn’t realise is, that it seems like it’s really only Kevin Parker that’s taking a break.
Speaking to The NZ Herald, Kevin Parker explained the difference between the Tame Impala you see live, and the Tame Impala you hear on record. “It’s largely a misconception that Tame Impala is a band,” he stated. “We play as a band on stage but it’s really not how it is at all on the album. The album is just me.”
“Tame Impala has two lives,” he continued. “One is the album, which is like a producer, and the other life is like a band. More of a live incarnation where we’re basically a covers band for the albums that I produce.”
Considering that Tame Impala started life as a solo project for Parker, it’s possible to understand where he’s coming from, however it may feel a little harsh to some fans that he doesn’t consider the rest of his live band members as, well, part of the band.
While Kevin Parker hasn’t pulled a Morrissey and claimed that the rest of the group are just ‘session musicians’, a statement like this might feel a little cold and impersonal to the rest of the ‘live side’ Tame Impala.
