If Looks Could Thrill

The first blush, the first soul-filled note, and you know: this is something spectacular.

“Warm on a Cold Night” is a masterpiece. It’s a laid-back, soulful sound, complemented by electro synth-beats, that “takes you to paradise in a 1950s Merc.” The song is, as has been said, a cinematic piece, building gradually from a sparse drum to a soaring-yet-deep underlying vibe of pure chill.

With lyrics that speak of a dreamlike romance, the song is an articulate hymn of gratitude, expressing with wondrous charm the grand felicity of life’s good fortune: “And I feel so damn lucky / To have you on my arm / And I can’t help but wonder / How we ended up alright / And I love you like no other / Cause this has never felt so right.”

The song’s sense of modern comfort plumbs deeper as you go along, taking you on a slow ride to the core of purity, a place where happiness loses all its cynicism. That slow ride is given life in the song’s unique and masterful video, which recalls the singular magic of the late-night drive: that magnetic escape into the world between reality and inspiration.

Building with delicate excitement, their newly-released song, “The Night“, takes up this theme. It’s an appeal to that one moment — divorced from the world, when all concerns dissipate — of the easy hopefulness of the late hours: “Lift up your head, won’t you let me see that smile? / If you spend the night with me / I will make it worth your while.”

Through only a handful of songs — characterised by an entrancing downtempo electro vibe — Honne captures the magic of a time for which we all long, a time suspended in reality.