Exclusive: Ricky Lewis Reveals Rustic New Video, “Gauntlet in the Sun”

New England native and Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Ricky Lewis has shared a new video for his track, “Gauntlet in the Sun,” exclusively via Paste.

Lewis’ debut album will be out later this year and his first single, “Gauntlet in the Sun,” is an intimate, country-tinged indie-rock tune with more than meets the eye. The song opens with traditional mid-tempo, indie-folk instrumentation, but concludes with an unexpected, slightly psychedelic guitar tone, capping off Lewis’ gripping, climactic journey, which ponders big life changes and all the baggage that comes with them.

The rustic “Gauntlet in the Sun” video features Lewis exploring suburban and rural America, walking through the streets of cookie cutter suburbia and playing an acoustic guitar amidst a herd of cows. Lewis told Paste of the video concept:

Last year, I set out on a road trip across the country with my friends Aly and Zander. We were looking to get out of the NYC bubble and see what else was going on. Aly brought her camera along to shoot the journey. Everywhere we went, strangers opened up their homes to us. “Gauntlet in the Sun” is about accepting every part of yourself and living moment to moment. I’m not sure I knew that when I wrote the song, but found it while on the road, with no real plan, relying on the openness of others.

The song was produced by Rod Sherwood (Au Revoir Simone) and also features Jon Graboff on pedal steel guitar (formerly of Ryan Adams & The Cardinals), Tim Mislock (the Antlers, Holly Miranda) on guitar and Chris Egan (Blood Orange, Solange) on drums.

Watch the “Gauntlet in the Sun” video and check out Lewis’ upcoming tour dates below.

Ricky Lewis Tour Dates:

April
12 – Cambridge, Mass. @ The Lizard Lounge
19 – New York, N.Y. @ Mercury Lounge

May
10 – Washington, D.C. @ DC9 #

(# – supporting Matthew Logan Vasquez)