Willis Earl Beal opens up with his ‘Traveling Eyes’ video

You can hardly accuse Willis Earl Beal of being devoid of inspiration. From his potted backstory to the time he spent in a Portland jail earlier this year (just two weeks, but still), his is a life that’s tapestry-rich - something that feeds into every drop of his soulful, stripped back take on rhythm and blues.

Premiering below on DIY, the singer’s new video for ‘Traveling Eyes’ is soaked in that classic haze. A ghostly, black-hole-esque apparition takes a stroll around an autumnal woodland, running into all kinds of mischief along the way. It epitomises the timeless angles of Willis’ music - vintage in feel, but harnessing an all-too-familiar sense of longing and displacement, it’s that which marks him out as one of modern songwriting’s greatest talents.

The video is one of two that Willis has created for the track - the second can be found over on his swanky new website. He’s currently on a UK and European run of dates - those which remain are listed below, along with the first look at the video for ‘Traveling Eyes’.

DECEMBER
02 Manchester, Night & Day Café
03 London, Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club
08 Nancy, France, L’Autre Canal
09 Paris, France, Divan Du Monde
10 Bordeaux, France, I.BOAT
14 Brussels, Belgium, Botanique
15 Amsterdam, Netherlands, Bitterzoet
16 Cologne, Germany, Stadtgarten
17 Berlin, Germany, Bi Nuu