The first song David Archuleta wrote for his upcoming EP, “Earthly Delights,” is reminiscent of the music from his early career: stripped down and raw, with his evocative voice carrying the track.
“Home” is a ballad. It features a piano track and his voice — the scaled-back production of it helps the sentiment of the lyrics hit harder.
“I don’t miss the mountains, they’re not calling out my name,” Archuleta sings, firmly. “When I drive down these streets, I’m the only thing that’s changed.”
At the time he started writing the new EP, Archuleta told The Salt Lake Tribune, he didn’t know what he wanted to do with his music — he just knew he wanted to describe how he felt.
“Home” is not only a love letter to love but also to himself.
“When you love someone, it can feel like you’re coming home,” he told The Tribune. “You also feel more love for yourself in a way that, at least for me, like, I didn’t really know how to do before.”
That act — of allowing himself to be loved and love authentically in return — helped “heal a lot of my inner child,” Archuleta said.
“Earthly Delights,” due out Friday, is a body of work that is a “response” or “continuation” of a track Archuleta released last summer called “Hell Together.”
“Hell Together”chronicles how his mother reacted to him coming out and subsequently deciding to leave The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The song marked a significant shift in Archuleta’s music career, a starting point for a new era in which he gets vulnerable about the entirety of his life, especially over the past few years.
Archuleta said the reaction to “Hell Together” and his coming out, particularly from Latter-day Saints, has been loud — mostly in a negative way. He characterizes it broadly as being told, “you’re lost, off the deep end, coming out of the closet and being queer.”
Those reactions, however, only made him more determined to be his authentic self.
“So it’s like, well, it’s time to indulge in everything that I grew up believing was wrong,” Archuleta said. “A lot of this music is a result of giving myself that experience and also seeing how sweet it can be.”
(Irvin Rivera) David Archuleta poses for a photo.
That’s where the title of the EP, “Earthly Delights,” comes from.
“It’s still earthly delight … the things that people tell you you’re going to hell for … it’s actually the same feelings anyone else would feel,” Archuleta said. “A sweet relationship or feeling companionship in your life, that is one of the most beautiful things you can experience.”
All the songs on “Earthly Delights” are distinct, each produced differently from the one before and after it, but the body of work is cohesive. The centering element throughout: Archuleta’s voice.
Two of the tracks, “Crème Brulée,” an ethereal, playful song, and “Can I Call You,” a dreamy, euphoric pop song, are already out.
Archuleta said the collection of songs, created in collaboration with songwriter Ryan Nealon tracks a range of feelings, from the wholesome and sweet (“Dulce Amor” and “Home”) to the sexy and flirty (“Crème Brulée”). In “Lucky,” he embraces the opportunity to be close to someone, using his wide and earnest vocal range.
The “American Idol” runner-up crafted “Can I Call You” alongside producer and songwriter Michael Blum.
After the six-track EP’s release, Archuleta will hit the road for a two-month tour to support it. His Salt Lake City show is Sept. 19 at The Complex. The EP marks the first full body of music the singer will have released in five years.
On tour, Archuleta will perform the new tracks from “Earthly Delights” as well as his fan favorites, like “Crush,” the 2008 song for which he’s most known. He played the two new singles and “Crush” earlier this summer at his first-ever performance at the Utah Pride Festival.
Fans, Archuleta said, can expect a more “fun, flirty and playful” side of him on tour.
“All in all,” he said, “I really just want to have fun and feel free and feel it’s like a liberating kind of time.”
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