Between the Land of Dream and Reality: El Knight’s ‘Save Our Souls’
The Bristol musician shares new track.
Photo: Sonny Barthley
Save Our Souls is the latest release from Bristol-based producer and multi-instrumentalist, El Knight. Following on from their 2022 sophomore effort In Light of My Contempt and last year’s More, the new single marks a shift from Knight’s established sound. Gone are the charming Eastern influences from their debut, I Can See the Sun is Burning Out and liminal melancholia.
Save Our Souls is as enigmatic as it is catchy, referencing the best parts of bands like Portishead and Warpaint while retaining its own niche. The track pays homage to trip-hop, with Roses-esque drum loops and repeated verses. There’s a touch of the psychedelic in the track, even daring to drift into a sax solo. Knight’s work has a kind of cool rhythm to it, an effortless grace that makes the song elusive and contagious listening, snaking through the phones in a hypnotic, serpentine dance.
All the while, Knight delivers vocals touching on love, self-doubt and the apocalypse, managing indifference with the subtlety and swagger this track deserves. Save Our Souls promises something for fans of all forms of music, boiling the art form down to its fundamentals, the rawest of elements. It packs a good backbeat, catchy melody and memorable lyrics. It works for the club. It sounds good blaring from the car speaker, in a moment of self-reflection or while sitting on some hill somewhere, waiting for the sun to come up at 5 a.m. Try as you might, there’s nothing to find that doesn’t work in the mix. Save Our Souls marks a high point for Knight, who has already produced some beautifully cryptic music since their 2020 debut, and doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon.