Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on the Ann Arbor District Library’s Pulp blog.
Chris DuPont didn’t go into making his new EP with a plan.
Instead, the Ypsilanti indie-folk singer-songwriter opted to write and record what came to him naturally.
“I just thought, ‘These songs are close to me.’ I didn’t have as much of an elevator pitch this time. It felt like a relief because sometimes I hide behind the elevator pitch. Sometimes I hide behind [this idea of], ‘Oh, this is what I’m about as an artist, and this is what I’m trying to say,’” said DuPont about Fragile Things.
“And instead, I just decided I’m gonna cut the crap and let people have it, and I hope they respond to it. If they don’t, then I will still know that those stories needed to get out of me for me to be OK.”
What resulted are five intimate songs about the trajectory of relationships and the vulnerability, honesty, and wisdom that come with them. On Fragile Things, DuPont shares those tales through emotive vocals, atmospheric folk-pop instrumentation, and ambient soundscapes.
“When I play them and share them, the consensus tends to be like, ‘Someone’s going to get something out of this,’” he said.
“When I play them live, they connect quickly—usually better than I expect. One thing I’m learning is that I think it’s just my job to create and not treat them like they belong to me as much.”
I recently spoke to DuPont about writing songs for his new EP, creating videos for the title track, recording the EP at multiple studios, preparing for a Nov. 17 EP release show, and collaborating with Kylee Phillips on a duet EP.
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