Tame Impala Take Brisbane on a Spectacular Psychedelic Trip
Brisbane Entertainment Centre, October 9, 2026
Sean Sennett
With Kevin Parker at the height of his commercial powers, Tame Impala opened their Australian tour with a breathtaking two-hour spectacle of psychedelic rock, dazzling lasers and sublime musicianship.
It’s hard to imagine a better way to celebrate John Lennon’s birthday than spending two hours in the company of Tame Impala, watching Kevin Parker and his band take a capacity crowd on a spectacular psychedelic journey.
Opening the Australian leg of their Deadbeat International Tour with the first of three nights at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Tame Impala delivered a show that was as visually astonishing as it was musically compelling. And that’s saying something.
Parker is currently enjoying a commercial peak in his career. With around 61 million monthly listeners on Spotify, Tame Impala have transcended their origins as an Australian psychedelic rock outfit to become one of the biggest acts on the planet. Fittingly, the scale of their live production has grown to match their extraordinary popularity.
Taking the stage shortly before 9pm, Parker opened with “Apocalypse Dreams”, immediately establishing the evening’s hypnotic mood. “Deadbeat Jam” and “Borderline” followed, the latter’s irresistible groove reminding everyone that Parker’s particular genius lies in making music that is simultaneously experimental and, somehow, enormously accessible.
Early highlights included “Loser”, which prompted a sea of mobile phones to rise above the audience, and the one-two punch of “Gossip” and “Elephant”, the latter still sounding like one of the great psychedelic rock songs of the 21st century.
But while Parker’s exquisite vocals, remarkable songwriting and the band’s superb musicianship provided the evening’s musical foundations, there was another star of the show.
The lighting rig.
And what a lighting rig it was.
As the house lights dimmed, an enormous structure dominated the stage, resembling something from Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Except this particular spaceship rotated, shifted and transformed throughout the performance, sending lasers slicing through the arena in dazzling geometric patterns.
At times, the production was worthy of Pink Floyd. At others, it recalled the spectacular excesses of Muse. Yet the visuals never felt like an expensive distraction. Instead, they were woven into the music, creating an immersive experience that felt like a beautifully orchestrated psychedelic trip.
Powered by thunderous basslines, shimmering synthesisers and the precision of a terrific live band, the music seemed to move through the audience as much as wash over it. There were moments when the combination of sound and light was genuinely transporting.
The opening section concluded with “No Reply”, before Parker disappeared from the main stage and reappeared at the back of the arena on a smaller platform.
Seated on a rug, surrounded by lamps, he settled behind his synthesisers for a pulsing electronic exchange featuring “Ethereal Connection” and “Not My World”.
Returning to the main stage, he found time to indulge in a little football banter, congratulating Brisbane on the Lions’ recent success, while lamenting the fortunes of his beloved Fremantle Dockers, for whom he holds the number-one ticket.
As the evening progressed, “Obsolete”, “Eventually” and “New Person, Same Old Mistakes” brought the main set to a rousing communal experience.
The encore opened with “Dracula”, arguably the evening’s biggest singalong. “The Less I Know the Better” followed, while “End of Summer” brought proceedings to a close.
Parker and his band achieved something that isn’t always easy in an arena of this size: they made the audience feel as though they were travelling somewhere together. The outside world disappeared, replaced by a universe of swirling colour, hypnotic rhythms, extraordinary melodies and breathtaking light.
Do not miss this tour.
Photos: Jordan Munns
Tour dates: https://www.tameimpala.com/