Tame Impala - Lonerism

If Innerspeaker was a psychedelic blast then Tame Impala's follow-up album, Lonerism, is a psychedelic fever. They play to the strengths of their debut but add even more of the feverish sound which saw them dabble with dream-pop.

'Be Above It' is the embodiment of that feeling; the phrase "gotta be above it" is breathlessly chanted throughout and is the sound of your own blood pumping in your ears. Meanwhile, 'Apocalypse Dreams' beats and ripples its fuzzy waves about your head. The vocals on all the songs have even more of a psyche twist to their sound, constantly echoing over and fading into a hole in space.

What disappoints on their second outing is the lack of any really solid riffs as on 'The Bold Arrow of Time' from their debut. However, there is more going on sonically. Instead of howling guitars there are swimming synths and buzzing organ keys. With the exception of single 'Elephant', which stomps and swaggers like a song with such a name should, there aren't any songs to snap you out of the haze. You drift and you enjoy but little will be taken in or remembered, like a drive through foggy country roads.

For the fans of a good psychedelic album, Tame Impala are the torch-bearers to follow. Listening sober in your senses seems to lessen the effect of this kind of music, which is a shame since there is much to admire about this band and their take on melodies.