Ruel just released the music video for the last single off his EP Bright Lights, Red Eyes.’ ‘Distance’ is the fourth song out of five that have a video or visualizer, with ‘Up to something’ being the only one that doesn’t have one – yet.
The ‘as long as you care’ and ‘distance’ music videos were filmed on the same day. Ruel shared on Instagram “distance music video is out now! thank u to everyone who’s been supporting this track, thought it would be rude not to give it a visual element. huge thanks to @grey_ghost for quarantining in darwin for 2 weeks so he could come to sydney and shoot 2 music vids in 2 days. link in bio.”
‘distance’ talks about the troubles of trying to avoid somebody who you’ve completely cut ties with. During these troubles, there are also Man vs. Himself conflicts, such as trying to find the right things to say, what exactly to think. ‘distance’ is about trying to get over that one special person.
The music video was directed by Jeremy Koren aka Grey Ghost. It captures different versions of Ruel who all coexist on a rotating circular platform. It mashes up different settings. From an area teeming with plants and florals to a section filled with old suitcases, and a minimal all-white segment.
Ruel Grows up in Bright Lights, Red Eyes
Bright Lights, Red Eyes is Ruel’s third studio EP, announced September 10, 2020. According to Ruel, the EP is “the most mature you’ve ever heard him.” The EP was announced alongside the release of the first single, “as long as you care” which features the title, Bright Lights, Red Eyes in the lyrics multiple times. In an interview, Ruel told Ash London that four out of the five tracks were written in Paris.
Back in September, Ruel talked about the new EP during an interview and said “I want to get across that this project is another step forward in maturity for me. FREE TIME was a step up from READY, and this BRIGHT LIGHTS, RED EYES EP is a step up again. This project was a stream of consciousness when I was writing it at the time. I feel like that’s the way all projects and songs are for me. They are moments in time. This project isn’t who I am right now, as I wrote these songs last year. But it’s the most mature you’ve ever heard me and it was me, in that moment in time. The songs I’m writing now will be more mature again, and I love that my fans can come on this journey with me as I grow.”
