Tame Impala - The Less I Know The Better - Chord

Key D major – B minor Chords B/D#, Dbm, Emaj7, Amaj7, Dmaj7 Easy key F

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Capo 0

Dbm  B/D#  Emaj7  Dbm

        Dbm
Someone said they left together
B/D#  Emaj7
I ran out the door to get her
B/D#    Dbm                    
She was holding hands with Trevor
B/D#    Emaj7
Not the greatest feeling ever
B/D#   Dbm
I said pull yourself together
B/D#       Emaj7
You should try your luck with heather
B/D#   Dbm                     
Then I thought they slept together
B/D#    Emaj7                    B/D#  Dbm  B/D#
Oh, the less I know the better
    Emaj7
The less I know the better

      Emaj7             Dbm     Dmaj7
Oh my love, can't you see yourself by my side
      Emaj7                Dbm             Dmaj7         
No surprise, when you're on his shoulder like every night
      Emaj7             Dbm            Dmaj7
Oh my love, can't you see that you're on my mind
         Emaj7              Dbm        Dmaj7
Don't suppose we could convince your lover to change his mind
       Dbm    B/D#  Emaj7  B/D#
So goodbye

          Dbm
She said "It's not now or never
B/D#     Emaj7
Wait ten years, we'll be together"
B/D#    Dbm                 
I said "Better late than never
B/D#       Emaj7                  B/D#  Dbm  B/D#
Just don't make me wait forever"
      Emaj7                  B/D#  Dbm  B/D#
Don't make me wait forever
      Emaj7
Don't make me wait forever

      Emaj7             Dbm         Dmaj7
Oh my love, can't you see yourself by my side
         Emaj7                          Dbm      Dmaj7
Don't suppose you could convince your lover to change his mind
Emaj7                     B/D#
I was doing fine without you
  Dbm                    Amaj7          
Till I saw your face, now I can't erase
Emaj7                     B/D# 
Giving in to all his bullshit
  Dbm                    Amaj7              
Is this what you want, is this who you are
Emaj7                     B/D#
I was doing fine without you
  Dbm                   Amaj7            
Till I saw your eyes turn away from mine
Emaj7                      B/D# 
Oh sweet talking where he wants you
        Dbm                Amaj7               Emaj7  B/D#
Said come on Superman, say your stupid line
        Dbm                Amaj7               Emaj7  B/D#
Said come on Superman, say your stupid line
        Dbm                Amaj7             
Said come on Superman, say your stupid line

Emaj7  B/D#  Dbm  Amaj7

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Tame Impala - The Less I Know The Better Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Tame Impala – The Less I Know The Better: key and chord analysis

The song opens on Dbm and ends on Amaj7. Its chords belong to both D major and Bm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

D major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = C# (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = G (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

B minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = G (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = A (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the D major side because D is heard 6 times while Bm never appears. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from B minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to D or to Bm; comparing both readings is a practice of its own.

Every chord of the key, listed 1 to 7 separately for each key. Chords played in the song show how often they appear; chords from outside the scale sit next to their own degree.

Seen from D major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
Imaj7	Dmaj7	Tonic — home	D · F# · A · C#	6×
ii	Em	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	E · G · B	—
V/V	Emaj7	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Asecondary dominant	E · G# · B · D#	24×
iii	F#m	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	F# · A · C#	—
V/vi	F#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Bmsecondary dominant	F# · A# · C#	—
IV	G	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · B · D	—
Vmaj7	Amaj7	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C# · E · G#	7×
vi	Bm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	B · D · F#	—
V/ii	B/D#	Secondary dominant V/ii — leads to Emsecondary dominant	B · D# · F#	26×
vii°	C#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	C# · E · G	—
vii	Dbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Db · Fb · Ab	25×

Seen from B minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Bm	Tonic — home	B · D · F#	—
V/iv	B/D#	Secondary dominant V/iv — leads to Emsecondary dominant	B · D# · F#	26×
ii°	C#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C# · E · G	—
ii	Dbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Db · Fb · Ab	25×
IIImaj7	Dmaj7	Relative major — the bright side	D · F# · A · C#	6×
iv	Em	Subdominant — moves away from home	E · G · B	—
IVmaj7	Emaj7	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	E · G# · B · D#	24×
v	F#m	Minor dominant — soft pull	F# · A · C#	—
V	F#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	F# · A# · C#	—
VI	G	Submediant — warm colour	G · B · D	—
V/III	Amaj7	Secondary dominant V/III — leads to Dsecondary dominant	A · C# · E · G#	7×

Analysis

The key pair is D major and its relative B minor (2 sharps). 5 different chords appear 88 times in total; 1 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. B/D#, Emaj7, Amaj7 act as secondary dominants, briefly pointing at another chord of the key.

Chord movement

There's no textbook cadence here; the chords circle around each other in a loop, so the song feels more like a groove than a series of arrivals.

Improvisation tips

D major pentatonic and B minor pentatonic are the same five notes (D – E – F# – A – B): start from D for a brighter phrase, from B for a bluesier one.
Over B/D#, land on B, D#, F# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Dbm, land on Db, Fb, Ab — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Emaj7, land on E, G#, B — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.

The song on the circle of fifths

Played in the song — chord of the key
Played — the minor's harmonic V or a secondary dominant
Played — borrowed or outside chord
Home region: IV–I–V and ii–vi–iii

Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.

Capo and easier keys

With D major shapes

No capo — open D shapes
Capo 2 + C shapes
Capo 5 + A shapes

With B minor shapes

Capo 2 + Am shapes
Capo 7 + Em shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

3 semitones up
4 semitones down · capo 4 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The opening Dbm lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The backbone is B/D#, Dbm, Emaj7, Amaj7 — V/ii–vii–V/V–Vmaj7 from the D side, V/iv–ii–IVmaj7–V/III from the Bm side. B/D# adds a moment of surprise: secondary dominant V/ii — leads to Em. It closes on Amaj7, letting the D side have the last word.

This analysis is generated from the song's chords by akorculuk's harmony engine using consistent rules. When you change key, the degrees stay the same; only the chord names change.