Lisa Knapp

Mojo Folk Album of the Year 2007
Twice Nominated - 2008 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards

Lisa Knapp's eagerly awaited full length album no 2 (produced by Gerry Diver - Speech Project/Sam Lee)is set for release in autumn 2013. The forthcoming single 'Shipping Song' has already enjoyed a BBCRadio6 Tom Robinson show premier.

Lisa Knapp emerged in 2007 with a remarkable debut album and established herself as a highly distinctive and creative artist. She merges a radiant style of traditional folk
material and self-penned song with her unique vocal, fiddle, hammer dulcimer, strings, banjo and sonic delights from the technological age.

Lisa was born and grew up in South London. As a child she showed musical promise playing violin, eventually winning a scholarship to attend a music place at Pimlico school. Classical lessons continued until her teenage years when she decided to abandon the confinement of formal training. She continued on her own path. This led her through pop to teenage raves, acid house and learning Hendrix songs on a Squier strat. Playing guitar and singing with friends in her teens, she came across folk music upon hearing a friend’s parent’s record collection. Rummaging through second hand record shops she found for herself the extraordinary voices and the vivid ballad stories of Annie Briggs, Shirley Collins, Martin Carthy, Pentangle, Nic Jones, Planxty and other British/Irish folk artists. She was hooked. Soon, a wide-eyed Lisa found herself drawn to the London folk clubs. Digging her old violin out of the loft she started to play again, joining workshops and classes, playing at Irish sessions and performing floor spots at folk clubs leading to her first festival performance. Encouraged by her partner, Irish multi instrumentalist and producer Gerry Diver, she recorded her version of the traditional song ‘Blacksmith’ for Gerry’s debut album ‘Diversions’. Influential rock producer Youth (Paul McCartney/U2) heard the track playing in London’s Tin Pan Alley studio. {Lisa} "At the time he was running an alternative folk night in London's Portabello Road with Simon Tong (The Verve). He made a remix of the track for release on his own project Butterfly Recordings Vol. 1." Lisa then started to record tracks for her own debut album, ‘Wild And Undaunted’, discovering a way to voice the material which was all her own. Using less conventional arrangements and acoustic textures and aided closely by her musical collaborator/producer and now husband Gerry Diver, a unique and highly innovative debut resulted. Included on the album is a version of ‘Blacksmith’ remixed by Youth as well as three original songs resulting from his encouragement to develop her own writing. The album is above all a collection of folk songs, old and new.

What the press say about Lisa Knapp and ‘Wild And Undaunted’

‘A major discovery’ Mojo

‘Surely headed for great things’ The Guardian

‘It’s easy to see why this young singer is the toast of the folk scene...her vocals, like those of Anne Briggs, come across as strange and stirring as a spring day.’ The Observer

‘Expect this record to be championed as one of the top releases of the year.’
Folking.com

‘Destined to be in line for plenty of folk award plaudits come the end of the year.’ BBC online

‘Never has a debut album been this outstanding’ Subba-Cultcha

‘Knapp’s spidery, emotive voice is likely to prick up anyone’s ears...young Maddy Prior with the girlish inflection of Bjork...The title track is particularly special.’ Uncut ‘Striking’ Q Magazine

‘The best debut I’ve heard in a long time’ Songlines

‘The sexiest folk album of the year’ Word

Tracks from ‘Wild And Undaunted’ have been played on BBC Radio 1, 2, 3, 6 Music, Radio Scotland and Radio Wales as well as local stations across the UK. To date Lisa has done live sessions/interviews for The Huw Stephens Show (Radio 1)at BBC's Maida Vale, The Mike Harding Show (Radio 2), The Andy Kershaw Show (Radio 3), Stuart Maconie’s Freak Zone (6 Music) and twice on the Tom Robinson Show BBC6Music.
Busy festival seasons followed for the next few years with a main stage show Cambridge Folk Festival, Larmer Tree Festival, The Big Session, Green Man Festival and many others,
Lisa was nominated for two BBC Folk Awards 2008 – The Horizon Award for best newcomer and The Best Traditional Track Award for ‘Blacksmith’ and in December ‘Wild And Undaunted’ became the Mojo Folk Album of the Year. Lisa was invited to take part in the Shirley Collins residency on London’s South Bank. Reviews of the performance raved about Lisa:
‘Lisa Knapp's a cappella Salisbury Plain radiated shimmering ethereality’ The Times ‘Young fiddle-player and vocalist Lisa Knapp spellbound the audience with a voice that had the clarity of a peal of bells’ The Financial Times
‘Lisa Knapp’s stunning unaccompanied Salisbury Plain was a passionate highlight’ - Time Out
2009/10
- appeared in BBC Electric Proms celebration of the music of La