Full Review

Lisa Knapp – Wild and Undaunted

Over the past 6 months or so Lisa Knapp has been gaining a strong reputation on the UK folk scene – a track on a fRoots covermount CD and good radio coverage have all been leading up to the release of ‘Wild and Undaunted’; after all the anticipation it’s great to report on an album that’s been worth the wait!

While many young artists fall into the ‘nu-folk’ category, this album, above almost anything in recent memory feels like a bridge between old and new – it’s certainly a traditional folk disc but the interpretations are striking and fresh. What’s even more impressive is that this interpretive innovation comes from Lisa’s musicality rather than production techniques; she uses very traditional instrumentation throughout but approaches the songs from a different angle to her contemporaries. Even with this individuality she still manages to appeal to traditionalists as well as drawing in newcomers to folk music.
Co-producer Gerry Diver and Lisa provide almost all of the instrumentation including acoustic guitar, hammered dulcimer, accordion, autoharp and there’s memorable fiddle from Lisa throughout the disc.
Eight ‘trad. arrs’ sit alongside three of her own contemporary pieces and the quality is high throughout, in particular ‘Beggar Beggar’ has a sweet, soulful sound and a beautiful fiddle backing, and ‘Blacksmith’, an 1825 York Broadside neatly sums up the album has it embraces both the traditional and the modern.

What this album and Lisa have is confidence, the eleven songs pass by quickly but the range of styles and vocal performances show innovation and belief in her own musical sensibilities. An excellent album and highly recommended.