Tame Impala changed things up on this year’s excellent Currents. The guitar-heavy psych rock jams were swapped for smooth R&B shine, yelping vocals were replaced with sweet coos, and what usually is slapped as a dire, dramatic shift felt unusually welcome here. Tame Impala were in control. No track on the record represents this more than “‘Cause I’m a Man”. Now sister trio Haim have gotten their hands on it for an official remix that changes the game.
When we last highlighted the track, Blake Rodgers noted how the song’s slow-motion feel is equally as digestible as the convenient pop of melodic, uptempo songs is. Frontman Kevin Parker zips the bass line to the forefront, letting its isolated plucks and hopping range aim to get the funk on moreso in bed than the dance floor. Coming from Tame Impala, that’s a little weird. The Australian fellas are too jokey to picture trying to seduce you, yet the female “oohs” at the end of each chorus point to their tongue-in-cheek direction as well as their straight-faced commitment to the sound.
On Haim’s version of “‘Cause I’m a Man”, things get even slower. Sounds boring, right? Somehow, the three sister reduce the song to a molasses tempo, but we can’t help but gaze more longingly at the result. It’s glimmering and psychedelic, stretching notes out like the neon blobs that float about in a lava lamp. Haim contribute new vocals to the song which feel like a response to Parker’s call, especially as the chorus builds anemically due to pace, giving their bright, powerful, sheer voices a more fulfilling release when it pops.
Check it out above and let us know which version you’re vibin’ out to the most!
