Lost In The Moment For The Second Time

Tame Impala “‘Cause I’m A Man”

It’s very hard for me to listen to the chorus of this song without hearing “‘cause I’m a man, woman / don’t mistake me for a dude.” It’s like the “Starbucks lovers” of 2015. And really, that’s kind of a great lyric because there really is a gap between being a “man” and being a “dude,” and if we’re being real, most young guys are just dudes. It’s aspirational. But that’s not really what’s going on in this song. This is a song in which Kevin Parker wallows in guilt and self-pity for saying something dumb to his girlfriend, and he’s trying to explain himself: He’s a good person, but he often speaks carelessly. He has a conscience, but it’s “prone to being overruled.” He’s not proud of himself, but he’s OK with being a flawed human. It’s strange to hear a song that’s so lovely and kinda sexy – I mean, this is basically a slow jam – be mainly about a guy struggling with a shame spiral. But that gentle, sensual sound is a great way of conveying both his genuine vulnerability and his actual affection for this lady, which – to him – is far stronger than a moment of thoughtless cruelty.

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