Apart from the occasional single here and there for movie soundtracks (Barbie, Dungeons & Dragons), Parker has been pretty quiet in terms of his own music, instead working with other artists such as on Dua Lipa’s ‘Radical Optimism’ from last year.
‘End Of Summer’ is a seven-minute slow build rave track, with Parker easing us in with drums and floating vocals, before building up to a release at the end that is more than worth it. The only comparable track is ‘Let It Happen’, which similarly builds to a massive climax. This new track is more in club territory, which, on the first listen, feels strange, but grows on you with repeated listening.
The follow-up track, ‘Loser’, is much stronger and gives us a better look at the themes behind the album. It’s funky yet woozy, like a daydream you can’t break out of, with Parker lamenting how he’ll always be a “loser”. Lyrics like “Tried to correct it / I think I wrecked it”, and “That’s how my life is / You couldn’t write this” feel like an endless stream of bad decisions that he's made and wants to correct. Out of the two, the latter is definitely the stronger track, with more variety in its production and gives us a better look at the themes behind the album.
This is an interesting start for Kevin Parker’s new era, and it might be different from what some fans hoped for, but you can always count on him never repeating himself.