Tame Impala’s “Let It Happen” Lyrics Meaning
Emily Wong by SMF· Published · Updated
“Let It Happen” is the opening song of a Tame Impala concept album entitled Currents. Said project centers on the concept of personal transition or transformation. And this particular song is premised on certain individuals’ tendency to remove themselves from the outside world – or at least trying to. For this track basically alludes to the idea that actually achieving such a goal is virtually impossible or in the very least an exhausting endeavor.
');var c=function(){cf.showAsyncAd(opts)};if(typeof window.cf !== 'undefined')c();else{cf_async=!0;var r=document.createElement("script"),s=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];r.async=!0;r.src="//";r.readyState?r.onreadystatechange=function(){if("loaded"==r.readyState||"complete"==r.readyState)r.onreadystatechange=null,c()}:r.onload=c;s.parentNode.insertBefore(r,s)}; })();Indeed the narrator has now reached a point where as opposed to fighting against external forces, he instead opts to let them in. This does mean that he is capitulating to them. Rather he is accepting a personal transformation which is occurring instead of resisting it. This is ultimately what is meant by the title, “let it happen”.
And yes, it is quite a complex concept for an equally complex-sounding song. But by the end, it reads as if the singer may have finally reached a point in his life where he is no longer intimidated by certain characteristics or ideas which speak to his soul.
“I heard about a whirlwind that’s coming ’round
It’s gonna carry off all that isn’t bound, and
When it happens, when it happens
(I won’t be holding on)
So let it happen, let it happen”
Facts about “Let It Happen”
This song is nearly eight minutes in length and features major alternations, some of which have been described as “gibberish”. Kevin Parker, who wrote and produced the tune, likened these variations to “being on a train, going through one landscape and then into another”. In fact he wrote part of “Let It Happen” on a train in France. But he has also noted that he composed different parts of it in diverse countries – the US, Hungary and Turkey in addition to France.
');var c=function(){cf.showAsyncAd(opts)};if(typeof window.cf !== 'undefined')c();else{cf_async=!0;var r=document.createElement("script"),s=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];r.async=!0;r.src="//";r.readyState?r.onreadystatechange=function(){if("loaded"==r.readyState||"complete"==r.readyState)r.onreadystatechange=null,c()}:r.onload=c;s.parentNode.insertBefore(r,s)}; })();Meanwhile the music video to the song was filmed in the Ukraine. And its director was David Wilson.
Although it wasn’t a major chart success, “Let It Happen” went on to achieve critical acclaim. For instance, it was put on 2015 best songs’ lists compiled by the likes of Rolling Stone, The Fader and The Village Voice.
That same year, the track was also nominated for an ARIA Music Award, reaching platinum status in the Land Down Under. And at least one Aussie publication, The Sydney Morning Herald, dubbed it as the “2015 Song of the Year”.
This is not only the first song on the playlist of currents, but it was also the lead single from the album. It was released before the rest of the project on 11 March 2015. Tame Impala initially introduced it to the world as a free download. And there are three labels – Interscope Records, Modular Recordings and Fiction Records – that put it out.
