It seems that wherever Tame Impala go, two things are always close behind: rave critical acclaim and litigation. This time around it’s the latter, with a musician threatening Tame Impala chief Kevin Parker with a lawsuit over an allegedly uncleared sample.
As Pitchfork reports, Parker has been slammed with threats of a lawsuit by Sam Culley, a member of the ’70s funk group Skull Snaps. Culley is claiming Parker sampled the band’s song ‘It’s A New Day’ on his track ‘Eventually’ from Tame Impala’s new album, Currents.
“Mr. Parker, my name is Samm Culley From Skull Snaps on your song Eventually you are using our drum sample from It’s A New Day you have not cleared this sample with us our musicologist says it is indeed our sample [sic],” an email, allegedly from Culley, reads.
“If we don’t hear from you in three days we will file the necessary papers in court against you and the record company.” Parker has shared the email via Tame Impala’s official Instagram account alongside a tongue-in-cheek response.
“WOW unexpected compliment!” Parker wrote. “The creator of the famous Skull Snaps drum sample thinks my drums IS his actual sample and wants to sue me for not clearing it! Haha!! Sam Culley you have 3 days to fire your musicologist. Anyone think this could be a hoax though?”
However, according to Pitchfork, it has since been confirmed that the email was no hoax and was indeed from the real Culley of Skull Snaps, whose famous drum sample has been sampled by countless artists, including Common, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, and others.
It’s not the first time that the band have been hit with accusations of plagiarism. Back in August 2014, a Chilean culture website pointed out similarities between Tame Impala’s 2012 single ‘Feels Like We Only Go Backwards’ and ‘Océano’ by 14-year-old pop star Pablo Ruiz from his 1989 album of the same name.
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According to Rolling Stone, Ruiz discussed the sonic similarities with ESPN Radio Argentina, telling the hosts: “Obviously there is plagiarism. Not if you have done it on purpose or not, but there are seven bars [in ‘Backwards’] that are equal to my song.”
Meanwhile, royalties related to Tame Impala’s overseas album sales were at the centre of a dispute involving a German publishing company, the band’s former label, and its parent company, thrusting the band into a tangled web of litigation.
Problems relating to the band’s royalties were first hinted at by Parker during a Reddit AMA session back in April, in which he told fans he’d received no money from the band’s international record sales.
