The wait is over: Four years after Tame Impala leveled up to a new tier of sparkling psychedelic pop with 2015’s Currents, the Australian act has released a new single. “Patience” takes the sleek studio advances of Currents and leapfrogs further: If that album was where Kevin Parker went from a heady bedroom artist to the kind of songwriter and producer who shows up on a Rihanna album, then “Patience” shows him fully comfortable in his expanded horizons, reaching even further toward the stars.
“Has it really been that long?/Did I count your days wrong?” Parker sings airily over a bright, colorful piano groove. The press release for “Patience” mentions Seventies disco and Nineties house as key influences, and those are in the mix for sure — this might be the most he’s ever sounded like the Bee Gees at their imperial peak — but there are also traces of the big-hearted 2000s rave vibes heard on Animal Collective’s Merriweather Post Pavilion. One thing we can say for sure: This song will sound absolutely massive when Parker headlines Coachella next month.
Before that, Tame Impala will appear as Saturday Night Live‘s musical guest on March 30th, joining host Sandra Oh. They have a few other U.S. and Europe festivals booked in the spring and summer.