And this is one of the most conceptual and controversial music videos we’ve seen this year
July 7, 2017
The All-American Rejects have just released not one but two singles from the upcoming album, along with the must-see music videos, which smoothly flow one into another, turning the two songs into an engaging, provocative 11-minute video on the two aspects of the life of one character, brilliantly performed by frontman Tyson Ritter himself.
The singles are titled ‘Sweat’ and ‘Close Your Eyes’ and can be watched below. It’s striking how Ritter easily took on the roles of both Betsy and Robert, which reveal two different sides of the lifestyle of one person, both depicting loneliness and the emptiness inside. Ritter has been fascinated with studying acting over the last few years, and it definitely shows in the video.
All-American Rejects singer recently talked with Billboard and underlined that “the visual offering is so important” for him on this album. Ritter said:
[quote align=”center” color=”#COLOR_CODE”]“The last five years of learning my craft as an actor and really developing that side of being a visual artist in that way has made me realize how important that really is — to put the eyes to the ears.” (via RockSound) “This is going to be more of a visual experience. This record is going to be about your eyes and the headphones.”[/quote]
The two new All-American Rejects’ tracks are dramatically different, though, with ‘Close Your Eyes’ taking a more melancholic turn:
“Something felt really nostalgic about “Close Your Eyes” for me, so I went with it,” explains the frontman. “Even lyrically, I’m proud of finding some sort of depth with that song that I don’t think I’ve grabbed on with previous Rejects tracks.”
Not just acting skills but also events in the singer’s personal life found their mark on the upcoming record:
[quote align=”center” color=”#COLOR_CODE”]“I’ve gotten married, which is a really beautiful, private experience for me,” points out Ritter. “I’ve been exploring acting in the last few years, that’s been such a free form of art to take the pressure off writing music.”[/quote]
All-American Rejects’ new album is expected later in the fall, and the band claims to have half of the record recorded by now:
“We’ve got six tracks on wax. This pairing, ‘Close Your Eyes’ and ‘Sweat,’ is a tasting. This is the sauvignon blanc and this is the cabernet.”
The band is heading on a US tour with Dashboard Confessional and The Maine soon, so be sure to catch them live.
Which of the two new singles, ‘Sweat’ or ‘Close Your Eyes’ do you prefer? Why? Be the first to leave your comments and stay tuned with AlteRock Facebook and Twitter to never miss on the news about your favorite alternative music!