Fyfe is 23-year-old Paul Dixon, an English artist who earned some shine overseas under the name David’s Lyre before his remix prowess pushed him to put down the guitar and nuzzle up to Logic Pro. Now he turns his crisp coo to the task of accompanying brooding beats, and the contrast is entrancing. Like Mikky Ekko before him and even James Blake to some extent, Fyfe’s bifurcated approach benefits both sides of the equation: The vocals give the production uplift, but the dark soundtrack stops those melodies from being too sweet.
On July 8, Dixon will follow his mysterious Solace EP — released with a picture of the back of his head as the only form of ID — with the “Conversations” single. In the barebones video for the song, he’s far less shy. We see the producer-singer wandering the streets at night while surreality begins to creep in from the edges of the frame. Fyfe apparently wrote the song whilst in the midst of a bout with insomnia — a factor represented in both the lyrics and the visuals. He will be making his live debut under the new name July 18 at London’s Sebright Arms.
