In 2010 the Aussie band Tame Impala released its first ever album, Innerspeaker. By 2019, it was not only headlining Coachella, but it had also grown into the decade’s biggest band as far as psychedelic rock is concerned. With just three albums dropped, the band has seen its fan base soar into the millions worldwide, with each album making the band even bigger.
The band which was started by Kevin Parker has other members including Jay Watson, Dominic Simper, Julien Barbagallo, and Cam Avery.
The Beginning of Tame Impala
The psychedelic music project was first started in 2007 by Kevin Parker, a multi-talented instrumentalist who writes for the band and also serves as its vocalist.
The band was first started as a home-recording project. However, as soon as he uploaded some of his recordings on Myspace, he attracted different labels. In 2008, he reached a deal with the Australian record label Modular Recordings. Parker later enlisted Jay Watson and Dominic Simper for the purpose of live-staging the recordings.
In 2008, it released its first EP Tame Impala [H.I.T.S. 003] which had one of the band’s first popular songs “Half Full Glass of Wine” which was ranked one of the Triple J Hottest 100 songs of 2008. Its next EP, Tame Impala was released the same year in October followed by Peace and Paranoia Tour 2013.
In 2010, the band released Innerspeaker which peaked at number 4 on ARIA Charts and 144 on UK charts. Two years later, Lonerism. It was certified ARIA: Platinum and BPI Silver. The next album, Currents which came in 2015 was even more successful than the previous two registering ARIA: Platinum, BPI: Gold, and RIAA: Gold.
Band Members Profile
Kevin Parker is the main member of the band and many people even consider him as a solo artist. However, the band also has other live members. Here are all those who make the band:
Kevin Parker
The frontman for the band, Kevin Richard Parker was born in New South Wales, Australia, on 20 January 1986. His father was Zimbabwe while his mother was South African. When he was only three, the marriage of his parents came to an end.
While growing up, he had a passion for music because his father also loved music and played it as a hobby. In fact, he started playing musical instruments with the help of his father. First, he started learning the guitar and then the drum when he was 11 following in the footsteps of his elder brother.
By 18, Kevin was becoming popular in the pub scene even though his father had warned him about doing music as a career because he felt that would ruin the magic for him. The problem for him was that there was nothing more that he could give his passion to apart from music and so he pursued it leading to the formation of Tame Impala.
Jay Watson
Popular as GUM, Jay was born on May 27, 1990, in Carnarvon and was raised in Northam. Although he is more popular as a member of the band, Watson also has a solo career and he is also a member of the band Pond.
As a solo artist under the name GUM, he has released a number of albums including Delorean Highway (2014), Glamorous Damage (2015), and The Underdog (2018). With Pond, he released albums including Psychedelic Mango (2008), The Weather (2017), and Tasmania (2019).
Dominic Simper
He has been with the band since its formation in 2007. He was the bassists until 2010 when he became the guitarist and keyboardist.
He was born in Pert, Australia on January 2, 1986. He went to John XXIII College, Perth where he met Parker and the two immediately bonded over their love for music.
Cam Avery
Another creative member of the band is Avery who is also a member of Pond and the lead of the band, The Growl. He is the bass guitarist of the band and its backing vocalist.
Julien Barbagallo
He joined the band in 2012 as a drummer and backing vocalist. Before then, he was with the French indie pop band, Tahiti 80.
Facts You Should Know About Tame Impala
1. Their Next Album
Four years after the release of its last album in 2015, Tame Impala is working on its fourth studio album which according to Kevin Parker, will be released in 2019.
2. Past Members of the Band
Since it began, the band has only had a member that left, Nick Allbrook. The bassist, guitarist, and synthesizer was a part of the band from 2010 to 2013.
3. Awards
With its last two albums, the band got the Grammy nominations in the category of Best Alternative Music Album; this was in 2014 for Lonerism and 2016 for Currents. It has won many other awards including the WAMI Awards, Rolling Stone Australian Awards, Brit Awards, and ARIA Awards.
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