Tame Impala frontman Kevin Parker is nothing if not prolific.
The Perth musician-producer has indicated he’s already at work on material for the band’s third studio album, but has also found time to kick-start yet another new side-project and expand into the world of rap via a new film soundtrack.
Having just been in the country for the Eminem-headlined Rapture hip-hop festival, Kendrick Lamar has teamed up with Parker and his Tame Impala cohorts for a new version of the band’s Lonerism hit, ‘Feels Like We Only Go Backwards‘.
The new version, simply titled ‘Backwards’ sees the 26-year-old millionaire rapper dropping rhymes over the Tame Impala track and is set to feature on the soundtrack for an upcoming blockbuster sci-fi adaptation called Divergent, as Pitchfork reports.
The Divergent soundtrack also features new collaborations between A$AP Rocky and producer Gasaffelstein, as well as Chance The Rapper with Clams Casino amongst new tunes from M83, Skrillex, Ellie Goulding, and more. (View the full tracklist at bottom).
While the Kendrick Impala crossover is yet to surface, footage of Kevin Parker’s new ‘disco funk’ side-project has turned up online following the group’s performance at the Spinning Top Music showcase at Perth Festival over the weekend.
Held on Saturday (22nd Feb) at Chevron Gardens, the showcase exhibited the Fremantle-based indie label’s impressive roster – including sets from Pond, Felicity Groom, and The Silents – as well as celebrating Spinning Top’s imminent expansion into the US via a deal with Warners. Among the lineup was ‘secret act’, AAA Aardvark Getdown Services, which is the Tame Impala frontman’s latest musical venture.
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The group featured Parker drumming while triggering samples of his own singing, performing along with The Growl frontman/Tame Impala bassist Cameron Avery, Cam Parkin of local band Cosmo Gets on keys, and Ben Witt, singer-guitarist behind Perth band The Chemist; together they rocked through a set inspired by the glitter-ball stylings of Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories, Chic, and Blondie, as Perth Now reports.
Discussing AAA Aaardvark with The West Australian, fellow Tame Impala/Pond/Gun member Jay Watson explains: “Kevin’s been writing all these disco, Michael Jackson megahits that he wouldn’t use for Tame because he’d be too sheepish about it but I’m trying to convince him to because they’re all next-level Thriller-pop.”
He added that the music is “pretty much Kevin’s home recordings, kind of electronic but with Ben Witt who plays guitar and maybe another guy and Cam playing with Kev.”
The disco-styled psych-funk of the Triple A project has actually already cropped up at secret shows around Perth already, under variously ridiculous aliases.
In July 2013, it was ‘Cam Cam and Kevin’s Groovy Groovy Funtime Disco Funk Elevator Explosion Aka Kevin Spacey In An Elevator’ for a last-minute benefit gig to raise funds for Felicity Groom after her car got stole. Then again last December as the Golden Triangle Municipal Funk Band for a secret show at Perth’s Claremont Hotel.
It’s anyone’s guess whether Parker’s project will reappear again – either as AAA Aardvark Getdown Services or any other wild moniker – or if the music will ever find it’s way onto an official release, but it’s clear the 27-year-old prodigy hasn’t been resting on the laurels of his award-scooping, Grammy-nominated, internationally-renowned music-making. Neither have his equally productive bandmates.
Pond have already completed the follow-up album to last year’s Hobo Rocket, the cheekily-titled Man It Feels Like Space Again, then there’s the debut solo albums for Gum (aka Jay Watson) and Pond drummer Shiny Joe Ryan, plus the new album from Pond’s Nick Allbrook and The Growl’s Cameron Avery that features 4/5ths of UK’s The Horrors. At that rate, those Best Of 2014 lists (especially NME’s) should be pretty easy to put together.
Divergent Soundtrack Tracklisting:
(via Pitchfork)
01 Zedd: “Find You” [ft. Matthew Koma and Miriam Bryant]
02 Ellie Goulding: “Beating Heart”
03 Pia Mia: “Fight for You” [ft. Chance the Rapper]
04 Ellie Goulding: “Hanging On” (I See MONSTAS remix)
05 Snow Patrol: “I Won’t Let You Go”
06 Woodkid: “Run Boy Run”
07 Tame Impala and Kendrick Lamar: “Backwards”
08 M83: “I Need You”
09 A$AP Rocky: “In Distress” [ft. Gesaffelstein]
10 Pretty Lights: “Lost and Found” (ODESZA remix)
11 Skrillex: “STRANGER” [ft. KillaGraham From Milo & Otis & Sam Dew]
12 Big Deal: “Dream Machines”
13 Ellie Goulding: “Dead in the Water”
Deluxe exclusives:
14 Woodkid: “I Love You”
15 BANKS: “Waiting Game”
16 Ellie Goulding: “My Blood”
