I spent $391 to watch Kevin Parker go to the bathroom.

I saw Tame Impala in concert November 17 on his Deadbeat Tour, his first tour since the Slow Rush Tour that ended in early 2023.

And wow—was it an experience.

For the unaware, Tame Impala is Kevin Parker, a solo artist from Australia who writes, records, and produces all of his own music. Perhaps you learned this from a man with wired headphones and Birkenstocks who thinks he’s better than you because his favorite Tame Impala song isn’t “The Less I Know the Better.” (Great song, by the way—it’s popular for a reason.)  

To break it down: Deadbeat is the artist’s newest studio album, released in October of this year. His first album, Innerspeaker, was released in 2010, and he’s come out with four other albums since then, in 2012, 2015, 2020, and 2025.

I was first introduced to Tame Impala a couple years ago, around 2021. My dad, who introduced me (thanks, Dad), has been a fan since Innerspeaker and thought it was important he encourage a new generation of fans, A.K.A. my sister and I. Maybe I’ll inherit his Lonerism record.

The concert itself featured songs from all five of Tame Impala’s albums: Lonerism, Currents, Deadbeat, The Slow Rush, and Innerspeaker (in order of appearance on setlist).  Something that really sets Tame Impala apart from other artists, at least in my book, is the fact that each of his albums is unique in its own right. 

In a 2015 interview with Loud and Quiet Magazine discussing his newly released (at the time) album, Currents, Tame Impala said that he approaches the creation of each album differently and hopes to remain unpredictable in his music career.

“One thing I know for sure is that I didn’t want what I did on this album to be an indicator of what was to come,” he said. “Because I knew that if I did the same thing again, or if I took the path that was laid out in front of me, I would’ve known exactly how it would play out–who would like it, who would dislike it, which radio stations would play it, how successful it would be–and I didn’t like the idea that I knew what was going to happen.”

And, though his albums are vastly diverse, I do think there’s something for everyone in his discography.

Admittedly, I didn’t know every song he played at the concert. I don’t claim to be the biggest Tame Impala fan out there, but even my mom, who only knew four of his songs at the time, absolutely loved the concert. Even if you don’t know the lyrics, the beats and his voice and the strobe lights will resonate with you.

The concert itself lasted a little over two hours and the band played 23 songs, a number on the higher average of the range.There was even a part where the camera followed Tame Impala into the backstage bathroom and averted to the floor as he used it, showing the entire Kia Forum on the big screen.

During that time, a whole bunch of warmly lit lamps were set up on the stage to make it look like a living room. At some parts, it felt like the speakers were so loud that my eardrums would burst, yet there was nowhere I would rather be.

Interestingly enough, the songs that stood out to me the most during the concert weren’t all the ones I expected they would be.  

“Dracula,” of course, was a crowd favorite.  

“Borderline” transported me back to 2023, when I listened to it on repeat for almost an entire three-hour car ride.  

The bridge of “Let It Happen” felt like when the plane takes off and it feels like your stomach was left behind, and the lights during it turned the Forum into another world.

I can confidently say that this concert was absolutely perfect…save for the fact that it was on a Monday night.

The headache the next day at school was worth it.