Just days after sharing his heartbreaking new single “Eyes Closed,” Ed Sheeran has shared a live clip of him performing the song.
Joined by Aaron Dessner of The National (who produced Sheeran’s upcoming album –, aka Subtract) on piano, as well as a string orchestra, Sheeran sings at the microphone with his guitar, delivering a stripped-back account of loss and grief. As Sheeran and crew perform in a warehouse, it is easy to visualize the heartache and loneliness that he encapsulates in the song.
Upon the release of the song, Sheeran revealed that he wrote “Eyes Closed” rather quickly after experiencing the loss of a close friend.
“This song is about losing someone, feeling like every time you go out and you expect to just bump into them, and everything just reminds you of them and the things you did together,” Sheeran said in a statement. “You sorta have to take yourself out of reality sometimes to numb the pain of loss, but certain things just bring you right back into it.”
Check out the performance of “Eyes Closed (Piano and Strings Version)” above.
– is out 5/5 via Atlantic. Find more information here.
Ed Sheeran is a Warner Music artist. .
