I Know Too Much

Ellie Goulding has spent 15 years approaching dance-pop from all possible angles—dreamy folktronica, club-ready synth-pop, world-crushing EDM bangers. On her previous album, 2023’s <i>Higher Than Heaven</i>, the singer-songwriter spoke of eschewing personal narrative in favour of meticulously crafted electro-pop perfection with universal themes of romantic bliss. The pendulum swings the other way on her sixth album, <i>I Know Too Much</i>—a return to personal songwriting on which Goulding stops being polite and starts getting real. Here, the 39-year-old strips back the club euphoria of hits like 2023’s “Miracle” and, instead, wears her heart on her sleeve, getting bittersweet and specific over toxic relationships past. “You know every single button to press/Only you could call me trashy in my black Prada dress,” she sings over classical strings on lead single <b>“Black Prada Dress”</b>, while tracks like <b>“Always Think of You”</b> and <b>“Misremember You”</b> find Goulding nursing her wounds over moody guitar chords. But redemption is found on the dance floor via closing track <b>“Ravers”</b>, a bit of sweaty house catharsis on which she promises a partner to be “ravers until we die”.