Following the release of his most recent single ‘It Might Be Time’, Tame Impala’s most recent masterpiece ‘Posthumous Forgiveness’ takes the listener on an emotionally turbulent journey into his psyche; a precious rarity, since he typically inhabits a persona within many of his songs. Indeed, the plunge of the electric guitar into a melancholic and sombre tone leads on to the content of the song itself. It is Parker’s lyrical confrontation to his late father Jerry, whose separation within his childhood permeates within his present lyrics. Parker metaphorically resurrects the presence of his father through his lyrics in order to gain closure.

Whilst the first part of the song deals with Parker’s melancholy, the second part exhibits a change within the instrumentals

Although Parker attempts an emotional closure which was never confronted within his childhood; this isn’t fully achieved. The pain protrudes throughout the lyrics, from ‘wanna play you all my songs’, where the fact that this is within the present tense reveals that the void of his absence is still a prominent presence within Parker’s life. This could also allude to the fact that it was actually Parker’s father that introduced him to playing music in the first place, where he claimed in an interview regarding his inspiration: “A lot of it was listening to my dad’s music or watching my dad play guitar. He was definitely a big part of my musical upbringing.” 

Whilst the first part of the song deals with Parker’s melancholy, the second part exhibits a change within the instrumentals, where the upbeat psychotropic guitar mimics the dreamy haze exhibited within their previous album, Lonerism. This transition feeds into the second part of the song, dealing with his forgiveness for his father. Whilst this original struggle is present within the lines ‘You had a chance/but you decided to take all your sorrys to the grave’, he eventually transitions to ‘just a boy and a father/what I’d give for another.’ His choice of ‘boy’ is evocative of his innocence surrounding such a loss. Indeed, this parallels his more recent single ‘It Might Be Time.’ The lyrics, ‘you ain’t as young as you used to be, it might be time’, infers that it might be time for Parker to both confront and forgive his past. 

Posthumous Forgiveness’ is available now via Modular Recordings Pty Ltd