Video Premiere: Sean Rowe, “Signs”

Sean Rowe keeps things simple in the music video for “Signs,” his newest release from The Salesman and the Shark. Directed by Tom Surgal, whose resume includes videos for Sonic Youth, Pavement and Gary Allen, “Signs” focuses mainly on stark B&W shots of the songwriter himself, bringing attention to his thunderous, expressive baritone and melodic songwriting. There are some welcome detours along the way — a babbling creek, a chandelier, a mid-song switch to full-color film — but Rowe is still the star of the show.

“‘Signs’ is very personal to me,” the nature-loving artist tells American Songwriter, “and so I wanted the video to try and capture the simplicity and emotion of the song rather than complicating it with a lot of flash or video effects. I just wanted to leave it as raw as possible. It was a privilege to work with Tom Surgal whom I really admire.”