Idol Chatter & Voice Views

David Cook’s new EP drops Friday.

So it seems only fitting that Season 7 winner David Cook is preparing for his next major release.

“Chromance,” a six-song EP, will drop Friday.

And while David’s vocals are as fabulous as ever — just check out “Ghost Magnetic,” one of the two songs already available — David says “Chromance” marks his attempt to step out of a musical comfort zone.

“I wanted to challenge myself,” he says in an interview with iHeart Radio. “I come from a rock background, so to try to bring in more pop elements (is) a comfort challenge for me. That’s where a lot of this (new music) came from, trying to step outside whatever box I felt comfortable in.”

“Chromance” will featured five originals — “Gimme Heartbreak” was the first song released — plus David’s cover of Phil Collins’ “Another Day in Paradise.”

Like his last full-length album, it will be an independent release, funded in part by a Pledge Music campaign.

As for that upcoming 10th anniversary of his Idol victory …

“Man, I’m so fortunate,” he says in the same interview. “I was on the show when you could still come off the show and have that built-in fan base to really invest in us as artists. My fans have been so loyal. Ten years later, to get to still do this is pretty rad.”

Fans who enjoy the new music, especially those on the East Coast, will have plenty of chances to see David perform it live.

A Saturday night EP release show in Nashville will kick off a series of tour dates you can check out on David’s Facebook page.

They include stops at Rams Head On Stage in Annapolis on Monday, Feb. 19, the New Hope Winery on Wednesday, Feb. 21, and the Pearl Street Warehouse in D.C. on Friday, Feb. 23.

I’d point you to David’s website for the tour information, but it’s clearly being revamped to coincide with Friday’s EP release.

Meanwhile, if you haven’t heard it, here’s “Ghost Magnetic.”