Just A Quickie with...South London folk singer-songwriter Lisa Knapp, who plays The Basement at City Screen, York, on October 18.

Lisa Knapp's adventurous second album Hidden Seam has brought her rave reviews, a cover feature in fRoots  magazine, airplay on BBC 6Music and Radio 3 and a live session on Radio 2's Mark Radcliffe Folk Show.

This year, she won the Best Original Song prize in the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards for Two Ravens and now she is taking to the road with her fiddle, hammer dulcimer, strings and sonic delights. Charles Hutchinson goes in search of the creative force behind Hidden Seam.

How has your second album, September 2013's Hidden Seam, moved your music forward from your 2007 debut, Wild And Undaunted, Lisa?

"I'm not sure really. I knew at the outset, after working with traditional material and touring Wild And Undaunted for some time, that I wanted to venture into songwriting and experiment with my own material as opposed to a more interpretive creativity.

"I was inspired by some of the artists involved in some of the shows I'd been asked to perform at, like the BBC Electric Proms celebration of Lal Waterson songs, which was organised by wonderful songwriter James Yorkston and featured the equally amazing Alasdair Roberts. Also the Daughters of Albion concerts, where I performed alongside people like Kathryn Williams and Lou Rhodes etc.

"Writing my own songs has given me a lot of confidence and is quite gratifying in a totally different way to exploring traditional song, though I absolutely love and will never stop doing that either."

Why was there such a long gap between albums?

"My daughter was only three years old when Wild And Undaunted came out and, after two years touring that, I wanted to retreat in order to write and also spend more time with her at weekends etc. I performed in my partner Gerry Diver's ensemble, performing his Speech Project album during that time and was still doing gigs. I also recorded Hunt The Hare, the first of my A Branch Of May EPs in May 2012 and I hope to make this a trilogy."

What is the significance to you of winning the 2014 BBC Radio 2 Folk Award for Best Original Song for Two Ravens and of being nominated for Folk Singer of the Year and Best Album too?

"It's always great to receive nominations/awards as a form of recognition from audience and peers. It also perhaps gives one some exposure to a wider audience who may not be so plugged in on the ground but who will have heard of BBC Folk Awards."

What drew you to folk music, after your earlier love of drum and bass, teenage raves, acid house and an electric guitar bought to learn Hendrix songs?

"I think probably everything about it; the music, words, stories and also the culture of it, the sessions and live and unaccompanied aspects are something to really treasure. I also think there is quite a lot of folk culture embedded in aspects of pop culture and children's culture without us really realising.

"For instance, the playground rhyme is almost if not the last vestige of the aural folk tradition in action; i.e. songs that are passed from one to another with no formal teaching, just naturally in the playground. Also, singing hymns at school many hymns are closely related to traditional songs and melodies.

Do you consider yourself to be broadening the sonic possibilities of folk music on Hidden Seam, just as Beth Orton was hailed for the folktronica sound of her Trailer Park debut and Fairport Convention for “inventing” folk rock with Liege & Lief?

"Not really. I just like to experiment and play with ideas and when something feels right to me musically then it feels right."

What is the overall theme of Hidden Seam? A year on, has your perspective on the album changed?

"One of the overriding threads is water and how it runs though everything in our universe, from outer space to inside our bodies. Another facet was how language kind of mirrors aspects of that in that sounds bleed over from one culture/country to another and what an amazing thing that is. So weather and the drama of weather was a real theme.

Also, I often hear things in terms of atmospheres and so we wanted make sort of landscapes for the pieces rather than just accompaniment. "I don't think my perspective has changed in terms of how I feel musically but yes, it's definitely post-album now. I'm looking forward to really taking it out live and working with it."

What is your partner Gerry Diver's influence on your work?

"Well, I wrote all the songs and lyrics first, apart from Shipping, where Gerry and I both wrote the music, and then we went into the studio. The songs really were just bare bones so he contributed in a really big way especially with things like string lines and lots of sonic ideas. He really did play a big part on Hidden Seam."

Hidden Seam has a fantastic cast list of guests from Kathryn Williams to James Yorkston, Alasdair Roberts to Martin Carthy. How did these contributions come to fruition?

"I'd met Kath and James and Alasdair Roberts, as I mentioned above, on previous concerts which we were mutually involved with and so it was amazing that they agreed to sing and play on my songs as I'm such an admirer of all of them.

"With Martin Carthy, his work has been such a massive influence on me and I've always admired him. I could really hear his style of guitar [in my head] on that particular track – Two Ravens – and I ummed and ahed quite a lot before asking; in fact it was Gerry who really gave me the courage to call. I nearly fell over when he agreed to come and do it; that's something I'll always remember, that session. Fantastic musician and a lovely man.

"Pete, I've collaborated with on many occasions over the years and I'm so grateful for his continuing support as again he's a phenomenal musician and always has great ideas."

In what configuration will you be performing in The Basement? Solo or with a band?

"I'll be performing on this tour with my Hidden Seam band, which features Gerry Diver on fiddle, keys, loops etc, who produced the album and recently produced a fair few more successful folk albums, such as Sam Lee's Ground Of Its Own and Mishaped Pearls' Thamesis. On percussion – some very experimental percussion too – we have the wonderful Pete Flood, from Bellowhead, and the fabulous bass player Fred Thomas, part of the Ire Collective. They really are a fantastic band even on their own."

Where might your next album take you musically?

"That would be telling!! You'll have to wait and see."

Will you be introducing new material on this tour?

"I'll be playing all the Hidden Seam stuff which is new; perhaps one or two other things… again it would be telling. You'll just have to come a long and find out."

Lisa Knapp plays The Basement, City Screen, York, on October 18 at 8pm. Box office: thebasementyork.co.uk/event/2114/