Lou Hayter announces second studio album, Unfamiliar Skin

"It’s a very personal album to me because I produced, performed and wrote it myself. It felt important for me to do this as only a small percentage of producers are women so I set myself the challenge. The title reflects the new feeling of this role but also has a dual meaning about why the enticing pull of the unfamiliar in relationships can lead to affairs, that’s what the title track is about," Hayter explains.

"I stepped away from my first album a little bit sonically and took inspiration from space-age r&b in the early 2000’s, the sound of Compass Point studios and electronic soul were also a huge influence for me. I have a magpie approach to music in that I’m always looking for something I haven’t heard before that is shiny and exciting to my ears: if it doesn't have magic in it I won’t use it. I made my own world in this record, I’m proud of it and I think it sounds quite unique”.

"In My Heart" comes with its own anime visual world, directed by fellow musician (The Horrors) and in-demand director, Tom Furse (Stevie Nicks, HAAi, Charles Jeffrey).

“Lou had shown me some brilliant photographs for the album of her on a motorbike and my mind went straight to Akira and Ghost In The Shell. For years I'd always wanted to make an anime style music video and recently the tools I needed to do it appeared in the world - so how could I not? The video shows Lou on a nighttime motorcycle ride through a chaotic Neo-Tokyo, attempting to clear her head but instead being rudely pursued by police and motorbike gangs.”