Little clicks recorded on a contact microphone submerged in a jar of water, digitized home movie footage from a gymnastics camp, slivers of early 2000s TV commercials and the ringing of a flower pot are amongst the samples that Patrick Zopff weaved into connect the dots, an album he released today under pity xerox. It is technically a debut for the project, though ‘pity xerox’ has held a role in Zopff’s life for years; a nickname for his visual art practice that eventually bloomed to an encompassing of the scrappier mixed media approach used in all his creative endeavors. It was natural to use the title for his “dream writing project” – given the parallels between a style of visual art meshing digital and physical media, and music that maintains a deeply organic feel amidst a variety of samples and technological elements. In eleven tracks of intentional sampling, twinkling synths and a grounded pop sound, connect the dots, patches growth, grief and love saturated memories into a stunning sonic collage grounded in optimism and acceptance. 

“Others say I’m bashful, because I haven’t much to say”, Zopff’s warm vocals flood through in the album’s first track, “golden bough”. The notion finds a place tucked between a laundry list of other peoples’ perceptions, the gravity of which seem to dissolve each time Zopff’s shares his own narrative, manifesting as “I say life is a carousel, and we ride it round and round”, and “I say love is the golden bough, that we’re all hanging on.” It’s a staggering tale of finding comfort in oneself, and exists as the first of many tracks to counter discernments that Zopff has little to say.

“I think poetry is one of the most difficult art forms for me, and without music to ease the writing process, it would be impossible for me. Writing this album was extremely therapeutic for me in a time when i was very unsure of everything. I had no job, I was adrift in the world, and all I could think to do was record music. Many of these songs were written as they were recording their final draft. A few of them were composed and recorded instrumentally before any lyrics, and I think having a heartfelt instrumental makes a person write about some vulnerable things. I had no reason to hold back, I wasn’t sure these songs would ever leave my room.” Zopff explains of his approach to lyricism.  

The album is sample dense, honing a variety of sonic texture while maintaining a gentle and warm listen. His use of samples range from a brief, calming swarm of seagulls in “connect the dots”, to a home recording that spans the entirety of “peggy”. Of the track, Zopff explains, “on ‘peggy’ the majority of the track is audio from my little sister Maureen’s baptism video. Later it cuts to audio from a scene with my mom, my sister, and I. Giving these sounds new life in song is really fascinating for me. I hope it’s interesting at least for the listener, but as an artist it’s an immense pleasure to revive these otherwise forgotten sounds as elements in music. Being able to hear my deceased moms voice on my album is huge for me, like I’m continuing our relationship somehow.” 

While the bones of connect the dots emerge from deeply personal experiences, the ways in which Zopff seeps his own vulnerability into the innovative nature of his sonic style yields an album larger than one individual. There is a grandness to even the most delicate tracks, part of which can be traced from a slew of contributions made by trusted people in Zopff’s life, such as mastering by Isaac Karns from marble garden studio, drum contributions from CJ Eliasen, Clarinet from Matthew Wallenhorst, and vocals from Zoe Vanasse and Louis Martini. There is also something familiar about the underlying ethos of the record, and how it yearns for comfort amidst waves of uncertainty and doubt. This idea is tethered to the album’s title, of which Zopff explains, “As the themes and the shared sounds across the album began to emerge, it felt like completing a sudoku square, or a crossword, or a connect the dots puzzle. Finally I could see the image formed by the disparate elements in my poems. for the first time I could write about my grief, my heartaches, my uncertainty, with shameless drum machine rhythms and playful synths.”

You can listen to connect the dots on the pity xerox bandcamp below!

Written by Manon Bushong