AS Tame Impala bound on to the stage mere minutes after their expected set time, the response that they elicit is huge. Quite simply; Tame Impala are the most consistently revolutionary band in modern music and all at the behest of Kevin Parker, the Australian mastermind that has began to re-sculpt the very fabric of the music industry with his own remarkable and idiosyncratic template.
Teasing the crowd to a fever pitch at the outset of their performance with a dense, swirling introduction which tantalises those in attendance, the band’s set begins in it all its glory with the layered and striking ‘Let It Happen.’
While it’s common practice for a band on tour to open with one of the standouts from their new record, what leaves Parker looking almost taken aback amid the cavalcade of lights and tripped out imagery is the manner in which the Glasgow faithful bellow it back to him, clearly having adopted it as though it were a track that’d already went down in the annals of musical history as a landmark.
As the wild crowd continues to recite each chorus and particularly wondrous guitar line with zealousness, Parker and his incredibly tight band subsequently deliver the goods and reiterate why they’re so vital.
Performing well loved material from 2012’s sophomore effort Lonerism in quick succession, tracks such as the immersing ‘Mind Mischief’ and the tender yet driven ‘Why Won’t They Talk To Me?’ thrilled all of those in attendance.
Whilst that’s all well and good, the main talking point of this evening is undoubtedly just how well the material from their third (and arguably best) LP Currents went over at every turn; being welcomed like an old friend once recognised among the reverberating guitars and ethereal yet imposing walls of keys.
The reaction that sumptuous cuts such as ‘The Moment’, ‘The Less I Know The Better’ and ‘Eventually’ garnered was nothing short of astounding, with each track being met with roars of approval and a general sense of exaltation which ran through both band and crowd alike.
‘Eventually’ stood out in particular, confronting the audience with its thunderous opening before Parker and the band nestled into its groove and provided a rendition that was nothing short of cathartic.
“You lot are mental,” Parker quipped at the midway point, clearly impressed with the Scottish crowd’s aptitude for uncontrollable jubilation.
“You ready to go to mental to this one?,” he remarks, before gleefully launching into Lonerism single ‘Elephant’; a track which is often hailed as a modern rock classic and rightfully so. Harnessing the energy of bombastic glam rock and funneling it into their own unique style, it’s hard to imagine a situation in which the track and its unfaltering riff could fail to cause absolute pandemonium.
Delving back into their most recent body of work, ‘Cause I’m A Man’ is the sight of a truly incendiary vocal performance from Parker. It is something which must be chalked up as one of the many facets that has attributed to their status as one of this generation’s finest bands; as no matter how many effects and distractions may be put in the way, the strength of Kevin’s songwriting allows their songs to be taken so readily into the hearts of those who encounter them and therefore translate incredibly well to the live arena.
Rounding off the main set with Innerspeaker’s ‘Alter Ego’ and the paradoxically lighthearted ‘Apocalypse Dreams’, the fans would no doubt have been left feeling privileged if they’d left it there; however it turns out that they had other plans for what Parker sincerely dubbed”the best crowd of the tour so far, and we’ve been on tour for a long time.”
Kicking things into high gear with the effervescent ‘Feels Like We Only Go Backwards’, the band seemed to be enjoying the occasion every bit as much as the paying customers; cavorting around the stage as though they didn’t feel any pressure to faithfully deliver this complex yet gorgeous slice of psychedelia to those in attendance.
Wittily proclaiming that it’d be their last song in order for them to “get on with our lives”, the band launched into another Lonerism track in the form of ‘Nothing That Has Happened So Far Has Been Anything We Could Control’, a track which shines on record but managed to take on new life as a hulking, triumphant masterclass in experimental rock ‘n’ roll that epitomised what this Australian outfit strive to do.
It’s no exaggeration to say that after the strength of this evening’s performance, Tame Impala have cemented themselves in the eyes of many Glaswegian music lovers as the most magnetic, inventive and absolutely pivotal band of our generation bar none.
