Co-founded by Kevin Parker, Telepathic Instruments is the newest company to hit the market.
Kevin Parker is the sole member of Tame Impala, and in 2024, the Telepathic website launched in June, with the tagline “Are you listening?”
Only a newsletter sign up was available at the time.
Upon signing up, everyone got the first email, “You’re on the list.” In the email contained the text, “You’ll know it when you hear it.” And also included two redirects, clicking the GIF logo sent you to the music video of “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley on YouTube. Upon clicking the text, you were sent to the Wikipedia article for the Circle of fifths.
Following a five month wait for the next announcement, many speculated on if the company was real to begin with.
One theory suggested that it was a fake company used to promote an upcoming fifth album much like the fictional Rushium drug used as the rollout for his fourth album, The Slow Rush. Another similar theory involved the Circle of fifths redirect, mentioning that it represents the rollout for his fifth album.
On November 18th, users who signed up for the newsletter got a brand new email and announcement from the company. The announcement? Their first synth, Orchid, received its first trailer. Branded as a chord progressor, the video showed a first look at the instrument. It received very positive reviews, as it was still mostly unknown what it was capable of.
The Orchid’s tagline is “Find what’s on your mind.” A week later, the second video came for the Orchid, showing off its use and what it can do. Once again, the video received extremely positive reviews, as it featured a sample of what could be done using the machine, although it was still questionable as pricing was not announced until weeks later.
Album rollout theories were also debunked on the website. On the FAQ, the question “Is This An Album?” was answered “Nope. This is more like an... Ideas Machine.”
The ORCHID ORC-1000 went on pre-order on December 18th. The price was $549, with shipping at $39. (all prices USD.) Only 1,000 units were available for purchase, and shipping begins in February. The pre-order required a password available on the Patreon launch page, and were sold out in minutes, with many disappointed that a fast purchase attempt was too late, although there was possibility that some orders were glitched.
The Orchid supports chord voicing, USB-C charging, different performance modes, (Strum, Slop, Arpeggiator, Pattern and Harp) and is capable of sending chords directly to your DAW via MIDI. The entire branding of the Orchid is an “ideas machine” and is meant to have rapid response so the idea doesn’t leave your mind.
While it’s a great concept, many feel the device isn’t fully worth the price. Many alternatives have been suggested for cheaper; many say that it’s an overpriced method to not require music theory knowledge.
No matter the case, it’ll be very interesting to see the reviews that roll out, and until then and global release, we won’t fully know what to expect. For having his name plastered all over the product, Kevin Parker / Tame Impala must deliver something worthy.
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