On Monday, September 14th, I had the incredible opportunity to attend and photograph the Tame Impala concert at the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Arizona. To put it simply, it was life-changing, and this may have ruined any concerts I attend in the future because it was that incredible. I’ve always been a huge fan of Tame Impala, but this experience took my love for him to an entirely new level.
I’ve never gotten to take pictures of a show this large, so I was incredibly nervous and honestly barely slept the night before because of it. I got to the venue and met all of the other photographers who clearly had way more experience than me, so that didn’t make me feel much better. But I have to say, all of them were so welcoming, and our guide for the night (and the person who helped me secure the ticket and photo pass), Courtney Vasquez, was the most helpful and encouraging person I could’ve hoped for that night.
The opener for the show was the incredibly talented Dominic Fike, and though I didn’t see his entire set, what I did see was visually stunning, and his vocals were undeniably amazing. He really knows how to perform, and even if you didn’t know a single one of his songs, you would still enjoy yourself. I’ve always enjoyed Fike’s music, so I had a lot of fun, and it was cool to be so near to him. There was one point while I was taking photos where he looked right at my camera so I moved the camera and looked him in the eyes, which was great in and of itself, but then immediately after that he said something along the lines of, “You know why I love Arizona so much? The girls here are so beautiful.” So basically he said that about me, and I will continue to believe that for the rest of my life as a little ego boost, even if it’s completely delusional of me.
After chilling in a lounge for a little bit between sets and getting to know the other photographers a bit more, we headed back out to the stage and awaited the main act. When the lights went out, the stadium erupted. It was truly one of the loudest crowds I have ever witnessed (and even Parker himself made a comment on it later in the performance). The energy was electric from the very beginning of his set, which made the performance even more exciting. Though I was technically there to do a job and be semi-professional, I couldn’t help but smile behind my camera and sing along the whole time I was at the front.
Once we finished with our pictures, we went back to the front to check in our cameras, and then headed to our seats in the stands. We had a great view, and I got to know the person I was seated next to, so it felt like I was there with a friend, which made the experience even more memorable and fun (shoutout to Isaac). By the time we had gotten to our seats, the laser lights had been raised and were on full blast. All of the lights were truly mesmerizing, so I just sat there in awe the entire time. One of the songs that continues to play over and over in my head since the concert is Let It Happen, and I highly recommend you go find a video of it. In the video I took, the beat drops and I lose my mind screaming because it was so stunning and electrifying. Definitely got full-body chills. I got to experience the performance both on the floor and in the stands, and though it’s cool to be close to the artist, I honestly preferred being in the stands because you had an incredible view of all of the lights. I had seen people online saying that there’s no bad seat at a Tame Impala concert, and they were all correct.
Parker, of course, played all of his hits, but our surprise song of the night was one of my favorites that he played. The song that we got was Obsolete (incredibly underrated), which is from his newest album Deadbeat. I really, really loved this album, and that song is one of the best from it in my opinion, so I was over the moon when it started playing. I honestly keep watching the video I took of the song over and over again because I can’t believe I got to hear it live.
The encore consisted of three songs: My Old Ways, The Less I Know the Better, and End of Summer. Of course, The Less I Know the Better is a fan favorite, and I really loved hearing everyone sing along to it (including myself, of course). My Old Ways was my personal favorite of the three, as it’s my favorite song off of Deadbeat. The song starts with just vocals and a quiet piano accompanying him, and then it drops into the actual beat of the song, which gave me the craziest chills of my life. I’ve heard that drop countless times through my headphones, but it was completely different in person, especially with how clear Parker’s vocals are. (I honestly can’t even believe that’s his real voice sometimes.) Now, on paper, End of Summer is kind of a surprising song to end with because I would expect the last song to be one of his most popular, but this pick was actually perfect. The song was so energetic, and the confetti cannons erupted with the most confetti I’ve ever seen. This, paired with the incredible light show, burnt this song into my mind, and it still gives me chills just thinking about it now.
I truly cannot fully put into words how incredible a concert this was, and my life is legitimately forever changed. This was the opportunity of a lifetime for me, and I’m so thankful to Courtney, Mortgage Matchup Arena, Tame Impala, Dominic Fike, and of course Cami for planting the seed and being the reason I was able to go to this in the first place. I have actually never been so nervous for something in my life, but I’m really stoked with how everything worked out and with how my photos came out. I’m also incredibly grateful for Isaac and everyone else for being so welcoming. I’m still in a state of disbelief that I not only got to see both Tame Impala and Dominic Fike perform, but also that I got to take their pictures. This was legitimately a dream come true, and I hope it’s not the last time I get to do something like this.
