The Slow Rush, Joe

I came to this review sharpening my knives. Maybe I was just in the mood to do some damage, and Tame Impala was going to be the scapegoat. Or maybe I had reason to feel unfavorable toward this album.

The rollout seemed like it took forever, with the first single being released TEN MONTHS before the album proper. Even if I was super excited for another Tame Impala release, there's no way my hypothetical excitement could last almost a year. But it's not even like I was necessarily pumped up to begin with. Currents is good, Lonerism is okay, but nothing about those albums screams FESTIVAL HEADLINER to me. This translates in my mind to the band being "overrated."

And then The Slow Rush finally came out three months ago. I listened to it a few times, but nothing connected. It seemed like Kevin Parker (Tame Impala frontman/mastermind) was creating music to retroactively justify their mutation into a big-font band. It didn't help that he said that he "wants to be a Max Martin," i.e. he might as well tattoo "sellout" on his forehead. So what, your rock band is just a stepping stone on your way to creating pop music for empty shells to cash bigger checks?

I dunno, maybe I just wasn't in a good mood at the beginning of this week. That shit happens.

But, as often happens with these Record Club albums, my negative expectations eventually flattened out, and the album opened itself up to me, becoming something that is good enough to listen to 25 times in one week, and occasionally enjoy. You can do this with anything. How many of you hated the taste of beer the first time you sipped it? And now that you're on your 10,000th beer, it tastes pretty good, right?

There were moments that stood out to me on this album, and I was able to realize they were stand-outs because I found myself playing them in a loop in my head later on in the week. The "On the borderline" loop on "Borderline," the "I'm still on track" refrain from "On Track," the "Is it true" hook from "Is It True"... okay, clearly Kevin Parker named these songs appropriately at the very least. There's also the "Believe me / I can" repeated section from "Breathe Deeper," which makes you wonder why that song wasn't named "Believe Me I Can."

All pretty good. Though there is a ton of filler on The Slow Rush that will never worm its way into my brain, the moments that popped did so effectively. Got me moving a little bit when I felt like I should've been curled up in a ball. Even at its worse, The Slow Rush made me feel less depressed; this damns the album with faint praise, but it's the fate The Slow Rush most deserves. No knives required this time.

GRADE: 2.5 pukes out of 5