The Unthanks

The Unthanks
Background information
OriginTyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom
GenresFolk
Years active2004–present
LabelsRabble Rouser, EMI, Rough Trade
MembersRachel Unthank
Becky Unthank
Adrian McNally
Niopha Keegan
Chris Price
Past members(of Rachel Unthank and the Winterset)
Belinda O'Hooley
Jackie Oates
Stef Conner
Websitewww.the-unthanks.com
The Unthanks

The Unthanks (until 2009 called Rachel Unthank and the Winterset)[1][2] are an English folk group known for their eclectic approach in combining traditional English folk, particularly Northumbrian folk music, with other musical genres.[3][nb 1][nb 2] Their debut album, Cruel Sister, was Mojo magazine's Folk Album of the Year in 2005.[4] Of their subsequent albums, nine have received four or five-starred reviews in the British national press. Their album Mount the Air, released in 2015, won in the best album category in the 2016 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.[5][6][7] In 2017 they released two albums featuring the songs and poems of Molly Drake, mother of singer-songwriter and musician Nick Drake.

Lines (Parts One, Two & Three), a trilogy of albums about the Hull triple trawler tragedy (1968), the First World War and the poems of Emily Brontë – the principal link between them being their focusing on female perspectives across time – was released in 2019.[8] Their album, Live and Unaccompanied, was released in 2020.[9] Their album Sorrows Away was released in 2022 and received four-starred reviews in The Observer[10] and The Scotsman[11] and a five-starred review in the Financial Times.[12]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference ft.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Steve Drayton (4 September 2009). "BBC Introducing: New name and sound for The Unthanks". BBC Local/Tyne. Archived from the original on 6 July 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  3. ^ "The Unthanks: Biography". The Guardian. 4 June 2010. Archived from the original on 7 March 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference White was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Best Album – The Unthanks". The Winners: BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. BBC. 27 April 2016. Archived from the original on 1 May 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  6. ^ Martin Chilton (28 April 2016). "The Unthanks win album of the year at 2016 BBC folk awards". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 4 May 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  7. ^ Mark Savage (27 April 2016). "The Unthanks win best album at Folk Awards". BBC News. Archived from the original on 28 April 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  8. ^ David Kidman. "The Unthanks – Lines". Folk Radio UK. Archived from the original on 21 February 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2018.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference KidmanLive was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Neil Spencer (15 October 2022). "The Unthanks: Sorrows Away review – from ponderous to airborne". The Observer. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  11. ^ Fiona Shepherd (6 October 2022). "Album reviews". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 16 October 2022. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  12. ^ David Honigman (7 October 2022). "The Unthanks: Sorrows Away album review — upbeat folk celebration". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 16 October 2022. Retrieved 16 October 2022.


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