Singled Out: The Neighbourhood Watch's Patient Love

Toronto rockers The Neighbourhood Watch recently released their latest single "Patient Love", and to celebrate we asked vocalist/guitarist Tristan Surman to tell us about the track. Watch Here is the story:

Like so many of our songs, Patient Love started on the old piano at my mum's place. I'd just gotten home from school, and I was aimlessly playing around on the piano. I just played this one note over and over again. Eventually I started singing this melody over the note. At some point I realized I had to add a second chord. From there, I just came up with the verses over the two chords.

Ethan, my brother, heard me playing and he came in. He started adding a little riff on top. Since we were kids we've always fought over who gets to play the piano and who gets to sing, so he asked if he could play. I surrendered. He started adding some new ideas to the song. Eventually we came up with the chorus. After that first session at the piano, all of the parts of the song were there.

The lyrics were really me consoling myself that I wasn't in love. I was looking for someone, honestly. I was tired of being alone. I was telling myself not to get impatient. I was reminding myself that the best things really only materialize when you stop looking.

When we took the song to the band, the idea was to make it simple and poppy. We had just made this very elaborate album with long songs and crazy genre-bending. Our thought was just: let's make a Lumineers track. Short, one vibe, and catchy.

The version we released was initially meant to be a demo we didn't take seriously. Eventually, we realized there was something great in that recording. From there, we worked slowly over a year or two crafting the track into something lively and listenable.

In the end, it's just a fun way to set the tone for the music we have coming out. We think it's a big artistic evolution, and we're excited for people to hear it.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more about the band here

News > The Neighbourhood Watch