Interview Tracklist: Tame Impala

Oh aren’t you lucky, a second of our Innovative New Interview Ideas in as many days.

Yesterday, of course, we did a ‘First & Last’ thing with Rose Elinor Dougall, today we’ve got a similar deal with Tame Impala.

We’ve asked them some questions based on the song titles that appear on their new album, ‘Innerspeaker’, which was released last week.

Some are a bit daft, some are less so. See what you think, and keep an eye out next week for another we’ve carried out with Pull In Emergency.

(Also: if you can think of a better title, let us know. ‘Trackterview’ has already been vetoed by someone very boring indeed.)

1. ‘It Is Not Meant to Be’

You’re a pretty philosophical band. Are you believers in fate? If something’s meant to be, will it happen regardless of mitigating factors?

I don’t really believe in fate in an events-in-your-life kind of way, but I do like to think of all the motion and everything that happens in the universe as all the atoms and particles bouncing off each other the way they were always going from the first time there was motion, like the first shot in a game of snooker, whether it’s chemicals in your girlfriend’s brain or a nebula imploding. ‘It Is Not Meant to Be’ is more just self-counselling for something not working out the way you wanted.

2. ‘Desire Be, Desire Go’

If you could have just one of your desires for the band come to pass, what would you choose?

See last question.

3. ‘Alter Ego’

If you were to liken Tame Impala to any alter-ego double act from literature or film, who would you choose?

Um, Batman?

4. ‘Lucidity’

Do you think being in a band, and all the advantages that affords, helps or hinders your perception of the world?

I don’t think there’s any one true perception of the world, but the more countries and different cultures you visit, the more you realise everyone around the world is exactly the same, no one’s really cooler or lamer or more satisfied about who they are and where they live. Basically everyone is always trying to get out of the city they live in.

5. ‘Why Won’t You Make Up Your Mind?’

Does the band find it fairly easy to make decisions - on things like setlists, writing, what to release etc - or do you have to put a lot of thought into it?

Yes, always a lot of thought, when it’s up to us that is… When it’s not a one-man decision, that is, a band matter, we are always relatively on the same page so the right decision is obvious.

6. ‘Solitude Is Bliss’

‘Innerspeaker’ was recorded in a pretty remote location - a beach shack four hours south of Perth - how beneficial was the solitude you experienced to the end product?

The isolation supplied by the place where the album was recorded is a different kind of solitude to what the song is about. BUT, erasing the outside world and their opinions from something you are doing creatively is always a massive help. It CAN be confusing and you lose scope of whether it’s the best thing in the world or the worst, but you just have to push on with what you think is awesome.

7. ‘Jeremy’s Storm’

Does the weather, and your environment, ever dictate the way a song comes out?

Yeah, but it’s the weather in your head.

8. ‘Expectations’

How has the reaction to ‘Innerspeaker’ so far matched up to your expectations of it? You’ve had an awful lot of positive reviews.

Before it came out I fluctuated between thinking the critics would think it was genius and thinking they would call it utter tripe. By the time it was released I was only hearing the flaws when I listened to the album, so when I read the first review I assumed our record label had paid them to give it a nice review.

When you get too many good reviews you just start to feel like the teacher’s pet. Sometimes I just love to hear about how much someone hates Tame Impala. Apparently a couple of street magazines back home in Australia gave the album 2 stars. I’m dying to read them. It’s a strange fetish.

9. ‘The Bold Arrow of Time’

What do you think is the most important lesson you’ve learnt during your time in the band?

Don’t listen to anyone else’s opinion.

10. ‘Runway, Houses, City, Clouds’

Do you enjoy all the travel that comes with being in a band, or do you sometimes tire of it?

It depends where you travel and who you meet, and who and what you have waiting for you at home. And there’s always fluctuation between wanting to cancel every show you have and end the band and go home and never come out of your house, and falling in love with being a nomad and feeling like you live in a space ship with everything you’ll ever need.

11. ‘I Don’t Really Mind’

Is having control over the band more important now than when you were starting out, or is it easier to put your faith in others now?

There’s always the desire to have more control, but you feel like an arsehole when you demand it.

When you’re starting out, no one cares about you and your band so you can do what ever you want. When you get bigger, you’re worth more and people’s professional careers depend on the success of your band, they care about it more than you do, but at the same time they’ll never understand the point of the music better than you. I would probably set things up a bit differently if I could start again, but I guess can’t really complain.