Ellie Goulding is officially back in album-release mode, and she’s keeping things intimate. The singer celebrated her new record, I Know Too Much, earlier this week at Circuit in Kingston upon Thames — giving fans a stripped-down acoustic set filled with new material, old favorites, and five live debuts.
The 10-song set opened with “Always Think of You,” one of the night’s first live debuts and an early taste of Goulding’s new chapter. From there, she moved into “Black Prada Dress,” the melodramatic comeback single that first signaled I Know Too Much was on the way. As the viral trend says, it’s kinda chic to return to the spotlight with a name-brand statement track, no? And the audience picked up on it right away.
Goulding kept the excitement going by giving “For Your Entertainment” and “Fields of Love” their own first live performances. Not a bad way to remind everyone that yes, Ellie has been busy…but you could still never forget her name. But this wasn’t just a “new songs only” situation, either. Goulding worked in “Burn” midway through the set, giving the small room a sense of familiarity.
Next, she worked through “4 Seasons” and the album’s title track, “I Know Too Much,” which also made its live debut. The back-and-forth setlist made complete sense for an artist who has always been able to move between massive pop spectacles, dance moments, and something a little softer and stranger. And Goulding is celebrating this versatility and vulnerability up close in intimate rooms.
A lot has happened since her last record, 2023’s Higher Than Heaven — ranging from major career milestones to less-fun events like a breakup. But now, she has no qualms talking, and singing, about any of it. Have you heard the new Muse collaboration “Hush” on the radio yet? Consider it another reminder that Goulding hasn’t gone anywhere, even if she’s been moving a little more quietly between eras.
Toward the end of the night, Goulding reached back with “I Need Your Love,” her Calvin Harris collaboration that remains one of her most recognizable dance-floor moments, before giving “Misremember You” its live debut. She closed with “Love Me Like You Do,” because obviously. If you’re playing a small acoustic album-release show and have a song that massive in your catalog, you might as well let the room sing itself into oblivion before everyone walks back to their cars in a state of euphoria.
For a short acoustic set, the Kingston show did a lot… introduced new songs, nodded to the hits, and reintroduced Goulding as an artist who still knows how to make a stripped-down room feel cinematic. Check out the full setlist here.
