Since her 2007 debut, Wild and Undaunted, Londoner Lisa Knapp has blazed an impressive trail at the avant edge of British folk, her bravura vocals lighting up self-penned songs and well-loved standards, while the inventive arrangements of partner and producer Gerry Diver – now credited as co-creator – have helped capture the wyrdness, wonder and darkness of folklore.
On Hinterland, the pair repeat the trick to thrilling effect. Opener Hawk & Crow has Knapp at her larkish best, giving voice to a cast of birds over a stumbling, broken rhythm – a kind of elfin Tom Waits. The spoken-word Train Song relocates us to today’s mundane realities – “poplars tall, village hall, stately home, sewage works” – before Star Carr whisks us back to the Mesolithic Yorkshire site where ritual headdresses of red deer antler hint at ancient raves.
