Unambiguously honest dance-pop.

Deadbeat by Tame Impala brings listeners 12 tracks that fill up almost a whole hour. The album grapples with the realization that the people in a relationship may be at odds with each other. As Kevin Parker brings up in “No Reply,” their differences are drastic: “​​You’re a cinephile, I watch Family Guy.” With track titles like “Loser,” “Afterthought” and the aforementioned “No Reply,” Kevin has securely placed his album in the role of the partner who just wasn’t good enough for the other, as it can be so easy to see your other half as the perfect half. This album would be a good listen for someone who was on the receiving end of a break-up text, but then again, maybe the wound’s too fresh to be this self-aware yet.

The opening track, “My Old Ways,” has a bit of an unusual start. Starting out with a rollicking, but singular, piano tune, the vocals coarsely announce: “here I am once again” as he’s “powerless as I descend.” The sound follows this literally, going from a messy piano and untouched vocals to a clean beat and heavy reverb, bringing the song “back into my old ways again”. The rest of the song continues with this electronic sound, retaining brief milliseconds of dead air to call back to the start and keep the entire song cohesive.

Jumping off from “No Reply”’s self-criticism, “Dracula” warms up with harmonizing background vocals that drop off into an eerie dance beat swarming with clever sound-bites: the ting of a bell and bubbles popping. The chorus is bright, with clear percussion notes of hand pans and chimes sharply contrasting the lyrics that warn to “Run from the sunlight, Dracula.” The song brings back those harmonizes from the beginning, with lower tones, to beckon in the bridge. The song ends fading out the overlaying vocals from the final chorus.

Track nine, “Ethereal Connection,” starts with a quick beat that only speeds up into the song. Being the longest track (running up close to eight minutes), this fast start seems to hint toward a completely packed song. This beginning feels club-ready, just as soon as the DJ finally drops the beat. Eventually, the heavier beat fades out into a synth-psycedelic-esque repeating reverb to make room for the lyrics. The rather lackluster beginning is balanced out by the meaning of the lyrics. Kevin Parker earnestly promises “I’ll stand by / By your side / Until the end of time,” showing that, despite all of the differences brought up in the other songs, he remains eternally devoted. This stress on “Until the end of time” recalls back to that long beginning, like perhaps he does have the power to make this last.