FOR Lucy Zirins Monday can’t come quickly enough.

The award-winning, Burnley-born singer songwriter will see her new album - Unfound - released; the culmination of a traumatic 12 months in which she admits she has ‘grown into her own skin’.

Unlike Lucy’s previous releases including her debut album Clocks from 2013 and a live album recorded in 2017, Unfound features an array of instruments with Lucy plugging in her electric guitar for the first time one some numbers.

“The whole recording process and the record itself was about taking myself out of my comfort zone,” said Lucy. “I’ve recorded live and with musicians I’ve worked with all the time but this time it was a bit like doing the Beatles thing of wanting go in the studio and throw the paint at the wall and see what sticks.

“It really stretched me and took me me out of my box. I’m quite extrovert on stage but when it comes to putting songs out there I can be quite introverted. They are delicate things and it’s hard to fight the feeling that you don’t know what you’re doing.”

On Unfound Lucy worked with producer Jim Knight.

“It was such a lovely process,” she said. “He just knew what would work and was so encouraging.”

From start to finish Unfound took over a year to complete and in that time Lucy went from studying to becoming a full-time musician and moving down to Epsom from her native East Lancashire.

“Being an independent artist means I’m always used to doing things on a tight budget and to tight deadlines,” she said. “I would see these big artists taking one or even two years to record an album and I’d always thought ‘what do they need all that time for?’. But I get it now. It’s about giving yourself some space and having a chance to really listen to what you’re producing.”

The bulk of the songs for Unfound were written before Lucy went into the studio.

“One of the songs I’d actually written as part of my dissertation at university and another, Clean Condition, I’d had around for years but never really known what to do with,” she said. “Then there were others which were really fresh and developed in the studio.”

The end result is a collection of powerful, often highly personal songs covering relationship break-ups, guilt and about someone moving on with their life.

“It is very personal,” said Lucy. “For me songwriting has always been cathartic, even when I started out writing it was always a way of dealing with the world around me. Working on the album has helped me close a chapter on part of my life but I’ve got a permanent snapshot of it through my music.

“Now those songs will take on meaning for other people which is one of the beautiful things about being a writer.

“There was a point when I didn’t know I was ever going to get the record done but now it’s here I’m really chuffed with it.”

Lucy will be showcasing songs from the album when she supports Tristan MacKay at the Castle in Manchester on February 15. Unfound is out on Monday available on CD or as a download from www.lucyzirins.com