Ellie Dixon - Tales of a Knight EP

Knights aren't exactly what you'd expect to find wandering through bedroom pop productions, but Ellie Dixon has never been one for the predicted path. Her latest EP 'Tales of a Knight' arrives like a medieval tapestry woven with drum machines and anxiety.

From the opening declaration of 'Renaissance', Dixon establishes her creative territory - where personal battles are fought with MIDI swords and mental health struggles get the full fantasy treatment. "A great knight has fallen, but an even greater knight has risen," she proclaims, setting up the EP's central metaphor with the kind of earnest charm that makes you want to grab a cardboard shield and join the quest.

'Miscalculations' shifts from intimate confession to sweeping chorus with the grace of a winning joust, while 'Guts' tackles anxiety with frank honesty. On 'Loose Change', Dixon examines neurodivergence with fortifying directness. The track's shifting time signatures and layered vocals are cleverly intended to mirror the experience of an ADHD mind - coins spinning and scattering across the floor of consciousness.

'Knight Shift' brings a change of pace with its rap-influenced delivery, proving Dixon can switch up her style as easily as changing armour. When she drops references to slaying dragons and brandishing swords, it feels less like cosplay and more like coding - using the language of fantasy to decrypt real-world challenges.

The EP closes with 'Thirteen', a more contemplative piece that shows Dixon can do vulnerability just as well as she does victory. It's the sound of someone turning their personal dragons into perfectly produced pop songs and doing it with style to spare.