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Robin Denselow, for ''The Guardian'', described it as "a bold and highly original set".<ref>{{cite news|url =http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/mar/10/the-unthanks-last-review|title= The Unthanks: Last - Review |author= Robin Denselow |publisher= ''[[The Guardian]]''|date=10 March 2011 |accessdate= 28 April 2011}}</ref> Thomas H Green of ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' said it was "string-laden and luscious but also delicate, wistful and melancholy".<ref>{{cite news|url =http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/cdreviews/8377086/The-Unthanks-Last-CD-review.html
Robin Denselow, for ''The Guardian'', described it as "a bold and highly original set".<ref>{{cite news|url =http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/mar/10/the-unthanks-last-review|title= The Unthanks: Last - Review |author= Robin Denselow |publisher= ''[[The Guardian]]''|date=10 March 2011 |accessdate= 28 April 2011}}</ref> Thomas H Green of ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' said it was "string-laden and luscious but also delicate, wistful and melancholy".<ref>{{cite news|url =http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/cdreviews/8377086/The-Unthanks-Last-CD-review.html
|title= 'Last' by The Unthanks' is luscious and delicate|author= Thomas H Green |publisher= ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' |date= 11 March 2011 |accessdate= 28 April 2011}}</ref>
|title= 'Last' by The Unthanks' is luscious and delicate|author= Thomas H Green |publisher= ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' |date= 11 March 2011 |accessdate= 28 April 2011}}</ref>
Writing in ''[[NME]]'', [[Anthony Thornton (writer)|Anthony Thornton]] said that the album "proves the mix of Rachel and Becky’s voices to be one of the true wonders of 21st-century music".<ref>{{cite news|url =http://www.nme.com/reviews/the-unthanks/11913 |title= The turning cogs below the surface of English folk|author= [[Anthony Thornton (writer)|Anthony Thornton]] |publisher= ''[[NME]]'' |date= 16 March 2011 |accessdate= 28 April 2011}}</ref>
Writing in ''[[NME]]'', [[Anthony Thornton (writer)|Anthony Thornton]] said that the album "proves the mix of Rachel and Becky’s voices to be one of the true wonders of 21st-century music".<ref>{{cite news|url =http://www.nme.com/reviews/the-unthanks/11913 |title= The turning cogs below the surface of English folk|author= [[Anthony Thornton (writer)|Anthony Thornton]] |publisher= ''[[NME]]'' |date= 16 March 2011 |accessdate= 28 April 2011}}</ref>As well as traditional material, the album includes a song written by band member Adrian McNally ("Last"), and versions of songs by Jon Redfern ("Give Away Your Heart") , [[Tom Waits]] ("No One Knows I'm Gone"), [[King Crimson]] ("Starless") and Alex Glasgow ("Close the Coalhouse Door").


In a departure from their usual practice of showcasing material from their studio albums, the Unthanks performed two concerts at London's [[Union Chapel]] on 8 and 9 December 2010 consisting entirely of material written by [[Robert Wyatt]] and by [[Antony Hegarty]] of [[Antony and the Johnsons]].<ref>{{cite news|url =http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/the-unthanks-play-robert-wyatt-and-antony-and-the-johnsons-union-chapel-islington-2158540.html|title= Ways to stay warm under the covers|author= Andy Gill |publisher= ''[[The Independent]]'' |date= 13 December 2010 |accessdate= 28 April 2011}}</ref>
In a departure from their usual practice of showcasing material from their studio albums, the Unthanks performed two concerts at London's [[Union Chapel]] on 8 and 9 December 2010 consisting entirely of material written by [[Robert Wyatt]] and by [[Antony Hegarty]] of [[Antony and the Johnsons]].<ref>{{cite news|url =http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/the-unthanks-play-robert-wyatt-and-antony-and-the-johnsons-union-chapel-islington-2158540.html|title= Ways to stay warm under the covers|author= Andy Gill |publisher= ''[[The Independent]]'' |date= 13 December 2010 |accessdate= 28 April 2011}}</ref>

Revision as of 20:23, 29 May 2011

The Unthanks
Rachel Unthank and the Winterset at TFF.Rudolstadt, 2009

The Unthanks (previously called Rachel Unthank and the Winterset, until 2009)[1][2] are an English folk group from Northumberland and Tyneside. They made their debut performance at Towersey Village Festival in August 2004 and, on 11 May 2005, launched their debut album Cruel Sister at Holmfirth Folk Festival. Cruel Sister received support from a number of DJs on BBC Radio 2 and was subsequently awarded Folk Album of the Year by MOJO magazine.[3]

Their follow-up album, The Bairns, released on 28 August 2007,[4] was nominated for the Best Album award at the BBC Folk Awards 2008[5] and also nominated for the 2008 Mercury Prize. The album debuted in the UK Top 200 Albums Chart at number 178 in the week after the Mercury Prize award ceremony.[6] Reviewing The Bairns for BBC Music, Mel Ledgard described it as "an album with a cinematic quality, huge in dramatic atmosphere".[4]

The band were nominated for three further BBC Folk Awards in 2008 (Best Band, Best Live Act, Horizon Award), and were successful in one category, receiving the Horizon Award at the ceremony in The Brewery, London.[7]

Their third album, Here's The Tender Coming, was released on 14 September 2009.[2]Sid Smith, of BBC Music, described it as an "astonishing record" which was "beautiful”, “haunting”, and “beguiling".[8] For The Guardian, Colin Irwin said: "This album may not be quite as bleak as The Bairns, and the sound is more sophisticated, but they still sound like nobody else... Tracks build slowly and mysteriously, but all are in service of the song. Their arrangement of the title track − a traditional song about the emotional devastation wrought by press gangs − brilliantly encapsulates the story's fraught desperation. Their version of Nobody Knew She Was There, one of Ewan MacColl's lesser-known songs about his mother, painstakingly paints a similarly dramatic backdrop with more atmospheric brass, and they put their own stamp on the Nic Jones classic, Annachie Gordon."[9]

Their fourth album, Last, was released on 14 March 2011 and was well received by the critics. Sid Smith, for BBC Music, said that "Proving once again that sad songs are very often the best, their fourth album is brimming with material that is as haunting as it is beautiful." [10] Robin Denselow, for The Guardian, described it as "a bold and highly original set".[11] Thomas H Green of The Daily Telegraph said it was "string-laden and luscious but also delicate, wistful and melancholy".[12] Writing in NME, Anthony Thornton said that the album "proves the mix of Rachel and Becky’s voices to be one of the true wonders of 21st-century music".[13]As well as traditional material, the album includes a song written by band member Adrian McNally ("Last"), and versions of songs by Jon Redfern ("Give Away Your Heart") , Tom Waits ("No One Knows I'm Gone"), King Crimson ("Starless") and Alex Glasgow ("Close the Coalhouse Door").

In a departure from their usual practice of showcasing material from their studio albums, the Unthanks performed two concerts at London's Union Chapel on 8 and 9 December 2010 consisting entirely of material written by Robert Wyatt and by Antony Hegarty of Antony and the Johnsons.[14]

In February 2011 they performed live, at Newcastle upon Tyne’s Tyneside Cinema, a soundtrack they had composed to accompany the showing of a film about the history of shipbuilding on the Tyne, Wear and Tees.[15][16][17]

Personal lives

Rachel and Becky Unthank are sisters, born seven and a half years apart, who grew up in Ryton, Tyne and Wear. Rachel graduated from Glasgow University and Becky went to Manchester Metropolitan University. Their father, George Unthank, is a well-known local Northumberland folk singer in a group called the Keelers, named after the boatmen who sailed the Tyne.[16][18] [19][20]

Rachel is married to group member Adrian McNally who is also the group's manager, musical arranger and producer.[15][16]

Discography

Album Release date
Cruel Sister 2005
The Bairns 2007
Here's The Tender Coming 2009
Last 2011
EP Release date
"Lucky Gilchrist" (Adrian McNally))[1], "Tar Barrel in Dale" (George Unthank),[20] "Sexy Sadie" (Lennon and McCartney) 30 November 2009

References

  1. ^ a b c d e David Honigmann (21 August 2009). "Rachel and Becky Unthank's new band". Financial Times. Retrieved 26 May 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ a b Steve Drayton (4 September 2011). "BBC Introducing: New name and sound for The Unthanks". BBC Local/Tyne, BBC website. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  3. ^ "The MOJO Club: Rachel Unthank & The Winterset!". MOJO magazine. 3 April 2008. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Text "author-Ross Bennett" ignored (help)
  4. ^ a b Mel Ledgard (30 July 2008). "Folk song is all about connection and communication – gifts that are second nature..." BBC Music, BBC website. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ "Radio 2 Folk Awards: Nominations for 2008". BBC. Retrieved 29 January 2008.
  6. ^ "Official Album Chart for the week ending 20 September 2008". ChartsPlus (369). Milton Keynes: IQ Ware Ltd: 5–8. 17 September 2008. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  7. ^ "Winners of BBC Folk Awards 2008". BBC. Retrieved 20 February 2008.
  8. ^ Sid Smith (2 October 2009). "Here's the Tender Coming raises the group's standard higher still". BBC Music, BBC website. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ Colin Irwin (6 September 2009). "The Unthanks: Here's the Tender Coming". BBC Music, BBC website. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  10. ^ Sid Smith (3 March 2011). "Brimming with material that is as haunting as it is beautiful". BBC Music, BBC website. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  11. ^ Robin Denselow (10 March 2011). "The Unthanks: Last - Review". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Thomas H Green (11 March 2011). "'Last' by The Unthanks' is luscious and delicate". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ Anthony Thornton (16 March 2011). "The turning cogs below the surface of English folk". NME. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ Andy Gill (13 December 2010). "Ways to stay warm under the covers". The Independent. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ a b Tamsin Lewis (24 February 2011). "Unthanks soundtrack brings life to shipyards film". The Journal. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  16. ^ a b c Tim Adams (27 February 2011). "The Unthanks: 'We're miserable buggers and not afraid of it'". The Observer. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ Jeff Brown (23 February 2011). "The Unthanks celebrate Tyneside shipbuilding heritage". BBC website. Retrieved 20 May 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  18. ^ Peter Culshaw (17 April 2008). "Rachel Unthank: swapping clogs for high heels". The Sunday Telegraph. Retrieved 28 April 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  19. ^ Colin Randall (1 February 2008). "Rachel Unthank: the big interview (2)". Salut!Live. Retrieved 9 May 2011.
  20. ^ a b [1] The Keelers: George Unthank. Retrieved 24 May 2011.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Unthanks&oldid=431539970"