Tame Impala have officially unveiled their next chapter. The Kevin Parker-led project announced Friday that their fifth studio album, Deadbeat, will arrive Oct. 17 via Columbia Records. The news follows the release of two singles in as many days, setting the tone for what Parker has teased as both a sonic departure and a continuation of the band’s psychedelic ethos.

The announcement comes just 24 hours after the unveiling of “Loser,” a track accompanied by a surreal Joe Keery-starring video. Earlier this week, Parker dropped “End of Summer,” a sprawling seven-minute dance cut that hinted at the project’s rave-inspired direction. Together, the two singles frame Deadbeat as a record equally committed to expansive production and self-effacing lyrical honesty.

Deadbeat will be Tame Impala’s first album in four years, following 2020’s The Slow Rush. That record, characterized by its polished grooves and themes of time’s relentless passage, cemented Parker’s reputation as one of the most innovative minds in contemporary rock and electronic music.

This time, Parker has described his vision as “kind of a future primitive rave act,” with the album drawing heavily from the rave and bush doof scene of his native Western Australia. According to a press release, the project explores “an endless bummer, a self-deprecating fuck-up stuck in a negative feedback loop when he should have long had his shit together,” placing Parker’s introspection at the forefront against euphoric, rave-driven soundscapes.

While the sonic palette leans into rave culture, Parker’s lyrics appear more grounded, reflecting on the frustrations and humor of everyday life. In contrast to Tame Impala’s earlier existential musings, Deadbeat introduces the image of a man confronting domesticity and adulthood while battling his own cycles of self-doubt.

The upcoming album also marks Tame Impala’s debut release under Columbia Records, signaling a new phase in the project’s career. After years with Modular and Interscope, Parker’s move to Columbia places him in the company of some of the industry’s biggest acts, suggesting that Deadbeat could be positioned as both a critical and commercial milestone.

With its release date just weeks away, Deadbeat is already generating anticipation not only for its sound but also for what it represents in Parker’s evolution. Tame Impala has long walked the line between festival-ready psychedelia and deeply personal storytelling, and appears to double down on both. The combination of rave-inspired production and lyrical candor suggests an album that will challenge expectations while remaining rooted in Parker’s singular vision.