Colour Film’s Matthew de Zoete is waiting for you to Come Here Tonight and drive him wild in his intimately intense new single and nostalgic video — premiering exclusively on Tinnitist.
The second preview of the Ontario singer-songwriter’s upcoming album Half An Hour, Come Here Tonight is a hushed lament of late-night longing and feverish expectation. Voiced in de Zoete’s smoke-ringed vocals, the smoulderingly seductive track is stylishly illuminated with gently glowing guitars, twinkling keyboards and a tick-tocking side-stick snare that counts the seconds until love finally walks through the door and puts him out of his misery.
“Anticipation can be a powerful experience,” de Zoete says.“Come Here Tonight taps into that suspense, that pregnant waiting. It’s a hazy evocation of a specific feeling. There’s some mystery, but no confusion.”
The Hamilton native’s fondness for preserving unique moments has been a foundational part of his music since he arrived in 2006, first under his own name and then as Colour Film since 2016. His songwriting has been praised for its atmospheric blend of folk and pop, with lyrics capturing emotions that, once experienced, remain in our consciousness to help guide us through life.
That approach takes on a deeper meaning with Half An Hour, recorded just prior to the pandemic in 2020, and delayed following an injury de Zoete suffered that almost derailed his career. Now partially recovered, he is finally ready to share the album, revisiting a time that already feels like another life.
Due April 26, Half An Hour was produced by de Zoete’s longtime collaborator Les Cooper, and features stellar contributions from vocalist Kori Pop — who accompanies de Zoete on all tracks — along with backing from Cooper, Christine Bougie and Dan Rodrigues. “We rehearsed on a Tuesday, and then over the next three days the songs were recorded live off the floor with everyone in one room,” De Zoete explains. “Kori and I sang our vocals live together as we were tracking the songs, and I think it shows. It was an intense experience, knowing I had to deliver on voice and guitar in that environment, but it was also liberating knowing the only overdubs would be a few flourishes to the keeper takes.”
The intimacy within the studio is embedded on each of Half An Hour’s 10 songs, allowing de Zoete to delve into personal dark corners and use his powers of observation to express striking moments of clarity. “When writing, I try to find a space between letting a song come to me and working to track it down,” he says. “Call it being actively open or receptive with a focus. It doesn’t always work, but I think it did with this batch of songs. I wouldn’t say there is any explicit theme, other than an honest exploration of life — the details on the surface and the larger currents below.”
Exploring everyday life is something de Zoete has learned from his primary songwriting heroes, from Ray Davies and Randy Newman to more contemporary artists like Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, whose unfettered style played a big part in shaping the sound of Half An Hour. That’s especially evident on the title track, a snapshot of a star-crossed small-town romance. “That song came out of a moment when I noticed two young people in a gravel parking lot at a rural crossroads deep in southern Ontario. Other than their cars, the lot was empty. They were locked in an embrace — just hugging — as I drove by, and they hadn’t budged 30 minutes later when I was headed home from the errand I’d done. They stuck with me, and the song was born without a fuss.”
There may not be many other more poignant images than that to encapsulate the strength we’ve all needed to endure the past four years. But for de Zoete, Half An Hour stands as his own testament to overcoming what life has thrown at him. Expect more such moments to come. “My music continues to be a work in progress,” he says. “I’m further along than I’ve been before and not as far as I hope to get. I think I’ve grown as someone who writes and sings songs in an effort to connect with other people. Working with Kori has broadened my experience of the songs. The music and words expand and resonate more deeply when I sing with her. I think it’s my best work yet.”
Watch the video for Come Here Tonight above, find the song on your preferred streamer HERE, hear more from Colour Film below, and put him out of his misery by joining him on his website, Facebook and Instagram.
