Just when you think all of the love song tropes have been explored and done before, Courtney Barnett arrives to offer a different take. Back in August, she sweetly professed on “Before You Gotta Go” that “If something were to happen, my dear, I wouldn’t want the last words you hear to be unkind.” It’s her ability to capture what we could possibly say before a door shuts and partners split for a period of time that challenges the romantic mind.
Now today, she’s shared “If If I Don’t Hear From You Tonight,” a song about the matter-of-factness of being in love, something that feels very apropos of the Courtney Barnett canon. It’s the final single ahead of the release of Things Take Time, Take Time this Friday. “And it’s so quiet outside, with this curfew lullaby / Is now an okay time to tell you that I like you? I wait for your reply, wait for your reply,” she sings over drums by Warpaint’s Stella Mozgawa and Cate LeBon on bass.
In the clip — directed by Claire Marie Vogel — the trio play the song basking in the creatively-charged sunshine of Joshua Tree National Park and it further drives home the upbeat nature of Barnett’s approach to love songs. In a statement, she shared a very cool sentiment on writing this one:
“I think my stance in the past was like, ‘There’s so many love songs and they don’t mean anything,’ but there’s something really special about zooming in on a moment and capturing it.’ ‘If I Don’t Hear From You Tonight’ comes from the state of where my head was at — trying to communicate honestly instead of keeping [my feelings] guarded.”
Watch the video for “If I Don’t Hear From You Tonight” above.
Things Take Time, Take Time is out on 11/12 via Mom+Pop. Pre-order it here.