Lisa Knapp - Till April is Dead: A Garland of May

by Malcolm Carter

published: 18 / 7 / 2017

Lisa Knapp - Till April is Dead: A Garland of May

Label: Ear to the Ground
Format: CD

Eerie but evocative third album from Londoner Lisa Knapp which finds her celebrating the month of May by interpreting a dozen traditional folk songs in unorthodox style

Review

Londoner Lisa Knapp isn’t the only musician who is pushing the boundaries of folk music; combining quirky vocals with pump organ, hammered dulcimer,ed harmonium, violin and viola isn’t quite as groundbreaking as it might appear. Throwing in the odd hooting owl and snatches of bird song doesn’t really raise the quirkiness level. But over her previous two albums Knapp has shown that she’s prepared to take risks and tread on unchartered territory; that she’s willing to step outside the circle. For her third album Knapp has collected a dozen traditional folk songs celebrating the merry month of May and the coming of summer, a topic she has touched upon before with her 2012 EP ‘Hunt the Hare: A Branch of May’. Maybe this writer was living in the wrong part of the British Isles, maybe in the wrong period even, or more likely keeping the wrong company as if someone had told me that the majority of the songs on ‘Till April is Dead’ were Knapp originals I’d have no reason to doubt them. As Knapp has added her own individual and unique twist to all of these songs, maybe those who were familiar with them through the years also feel that they now belong to this exceptional interpreter anyway. The strange thing is that since living in Northern Europe where I am now based the month of May has meant more to me than it ever did while living in the UK; it really is the month when hibernation ends and we can all begin living again and the celebrations which I’d only previously read about are all around me and real, so this album has more relevance to me now than it would if I’d stayed in the UK. The first song on ‘Till April is Dead’ is ‘The Night Before May Day’ and although we are by now used to contemporary folk music taking on board all manner of sounds it’s obvious from the off that Knapp is not going to hold back on her musical vision. The first voice heard is that of Steve Roud, which is repeated throughout the song, explaining the origin of May Poles and how important the preparations on the evening before May Day are. Just Roud’s spoken explanations have an eeriness about them; coupled with hooting owls and various other noises, not to mention Knapp’s beautiful but unsettling vocal performance the effect is both chilling and captivating. The song segues into the title song, ‘Till April is Dead’ which also incorporates ‘Hal-An-Tow’. The latter is sung while the main ‘song’ is spoken word and takes in a handful of languages. While it does evoke CocoRosie at times Knapp keeps the weirdness factor in check. Just. Graham Coxton lends his vocals and guitar to ‘Searching for Lambs’, a song probably best known by the version from Shirley Collins; again Knapp (and Coxton who is the perfect foil vocally on this song) adds a contemporary, unsettling shade to the song. It results in a remarkable performance and arrangement. ‘Staines Morris’ features Knapp’s most theatrical vocal performance so far on the album, which is accompanied by charging drums. When Current 93’s David Tibet’s vocals appear you can imagine the singer acting out his part, it’s that effective. ‘May Garland’ has one of the prettiest melodies on the album (although the lyrics belie this) highlighting just what a fragile and special instrument Knapp’s voice is. The cuckoo, the hum of bees, the winding of a clock can’t detract from the fact that Knapp is a vocalist in a class of her own. ‘Lily White Hand’ also deserves special mention. This six-minute tale has a grim ending, and again the minimal but effective musical backing only adds to the mystery and unsettling overall feel of the song. It’s doubtful if there will be a stranger yet more compelling album released this year unless Knapp gets to work on a follow-up immediately. If we are to take the closing statement on the CD booklet a certain way “I’ll call no more unto your house before another year, in the merry morning of May…” it’s unlikely that we will have more music from Knapp in 2017 but she can rest assured that with ‘Till April Is Dead’ she has certainly shown that she is taking folk music to places in 2017 that no other artist dare go.

Track Listing:-

1 The Night Before May Day
2 Till April Is Dead
3 Searching For Lambs
4 Staines Morris
5 May Garland
6 Lily White Hand
7 Lark In The Morning
8 Bedforshire May Day Carol
9 Where's Troy?
10 Don't You Go A Rushing
11 Pleasant Month Of May
12 Padstow May Song