Here’s How (and Why) Tame Impala's Kevin Parker Changed "Borderline" for "The Slow Rush"

Same Impala? Not quite.

Five years after Currents and many moons after it was initially promised, Tame Impala head honcho Kevin Parker has finally deigned to give us a new album.

Its title, The Slow Rush, is apt.

The record was preceded by a slew of singles (not counting the Perth artist's collaborations with Theophilus London). One of those singles, "Patience"—also aptly titled—didn’t even make the final cut.

The first official glimpse of the album came in April of 2019. Titled "Borderline", it was four minutes and 32 seconds of smooth, sinewy grooves, complemented by Parker's lyrics about a late-night fight that was merging into a very sober morning indeed. It was further indication that chunky guitar riffs were a thing of Tame Impala’s past. ("Elephant", we hardly knew ye.)

Fans ate it up, with "Borderline" even making it all the way to #18 on the Triple J Hottest 100.

But something funny happened on the way to The Slow Rush’s 2020 release date. Those who, ahem, rushed to stream the album last week saw that "Borderline" had been condensed to three minutes and 57 seconds.

It wasn’t simply a case of Parker chopping off 35 seconds from the end and fading out early, like a sort-of reverse-radio-edit. As he told Triple J, he decided to fully retool it.

"I was so in my own head about the song," he explained.

"The way I describe it is the way it sounds now is the way I was hearing it when I released it the first time. So for me, the drums sounded just heaps more hard-hitting.

"And it was just things that I could hear in the song that I didn’t realise no one else could, for example, the bassline, which was just kind of an example of lack of perspective when you’re working on a song, or anything that anyone’s working on ever. You lose perspective when you’re working on it, which is good, too, it’s kind of beautiful that you have no idea what you’re doing."

If you can't bear the thought of the original being changed, the good news is that, for now at least, you can still enjoy it on Spotify and YouTube, where it’s listed as a standalone single. But for those who bought the album, it might be time to face it: "Borderline" is not as long as it used to be.

To hear what’s changed, compare the two cuts below.

Version #1:

Version #2:

The Intro:

The first change is the deletion of Parker’s opening croon. Instead, the song is introduced with a kick-drum and a slow rumble. The first vocals, tinny keyboard and um, whatever that suction sound is at 0:26 are still the same on the new cut, but a little louder in the mix.

However, it’s the newly-amplified bassline that people will appreciate most. Plus, the awesome Eastern flutes that didn’t originally rock up until 1:11 are now right there from 0:31.

The First Verse:

There’s now a second keyboard accompanying Parker, though it’s eventually swallowed whole by the wall of sound already established by the intro. At 1:25 on the album, it shimmers away and into the bridge, whereas previously, it took until 1:45 to get to that spaced-out place.

The Middle:

The fuzzed-out bassline is much fuzzier and—you guessed it—louder here, beginning from the 1:50 mark.

The End:

Maybe the most disappointing change is Parker’s decision to jettison the meat of Verse 3, dropping its more contemplative lyrics: "How could I have known?/ How was I to know this high came rushing?/ I said, 'Come with me outside'/ Need to clear my mind, this weight is crushing/ Do you see the light, oh, coming from their eyes?/ Oh no/ And I couldn't get away."

Instead, he goes for a bigger Michael Jackson-inspired finish, cooing: "They used to do this all the time in college/ And we're on the borderline (Ooh)/  Caught between the tides of pain and rapture." (The "ooh" bit is where he sounds like MJ.)

It all ends with the fuzziest bassline yet.

The Most Inexplicable Change:

In the original "Borderline", he kicks off the bridge by singing, "There I go". Now, he says, "Here I go". Way to change perspective, Kev!

What else did we miss? Let us know in the comments!

Header Image: NurPhoto via Getty Images