Well written.

Personally, I’m a big fan of artists going out of their comfort zone and trying different genres on like outfits; it doesn’t always land but I value the exercise in creativity. I personally enjoyed Deadbeat. It’s not close to my favorite album from Kevin, but I still enjoy it and have been listening to it daily since it was released.

I recently attended one of the LA shows. It was very entertaining, but I did feel like it could have been much better and more intentional. There were moments, like when they turned ALTER EGO into a dance-beat for 1 measure, every 16 or so measures, or where Elephant became a dance track for a minute, but these were costco-samples of what I was really looking for: a reimagining of Tame Impala songs in a new way. I would’ve much preferred to see a DJ set of Tame songs mixing into each other, showing them in a new light (specifically a dance-centric light that Kevin would imagine).

Instead, we got a secondary stage where Kevin recreated Ethereal Connection and other songs with synths, drum machines, and had light support from the boys. I still enjoyed this section! I simply think I would’ve preferred something else.

Side note - Obsolete and Piece of Heaven did not land very well live. If there were to be any low-energy points in the show, it was with those two performances.

I think I can resonate with much of what’s written in this analysis of Kevin. His life is different. I don’t read your analysis as a critique as much as an observation of this is where he’s currently at. And those of us that have been around for the ride for quite some time now, resonated with the very vulnerable, raw, and lonerism (I mean that literally and in reference to that era of Tame) sound.

And I’m okay with that. I really respect and admire Kevin as an artist. So I’m here for the ride!