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They Came From The North
The Unthanks are the Marmite of English folk music,
attracting adulatory praise and fierce vitriol in equal
measure. Colin Irwin opens the doors to Unthankland:
photos by Judith Burrows.
I
feared carnage. The ten members of brass, strings, drums, electric guitars and
The Unthanks touring band had driv- everything, it still resolutely eschewed
en to London through the night after populist gambits and, in terms of material
last night’s gig in the frozen northern and the vocal performances of its two
climes of Stockton-on-Tees and, near- main protagonists, stuck close to their core
ing the end of an intimidatingly intensive traditional music values. The folk song tra-
40-date British tour, I was half-expecting ditions of the North East which shaped
to find Rachel and Becky Unthank in vin- their whole psyche from childhood clearly
tage Gallagher brothers mode, knocking still burn right through them. It’s not on
ten bells out of one another while the rest any of their albums, but one of the
of the band mechanically go through the strongest songs in their live act is Tar Barrel
motions in hostile silence as a carefully In Dale, written by their dad George (of
worded press release is constructed to The Keelers) about the amazing annual
announce their impending split. New Year’s Eve ritual where villagers dress
But hey, lots of people get lots of
in a variety of colourful costumes to
things wrong about The Unthanks and
parade through the Northumberland vil-
here’s Niopha Keegan waiting in the foyer
lage of Allendale with flaming whiskey
with a huge smile and a big hug to allay
barrels on their heads filled with tar,
those fears. Well, there was the scary night
before igniting a huge bonfire with them
in Edinburgh when they had to manhan-
on the stroke of midnight.
dle a piano up three flights of stairs to the Their widely contrasting vocal styles –
gig, but apart from that everything has Rachel sounds raw and vulnerable, while
gone swimmingly and they’re having the Becky’s voice is creamy and sensual –
time of their lives. “It’s like having a big evolved largely from close encounters with
pyjama party,” says Rachel of life on the the mostly unaccompanied singers they
Unthank tour bus. “I don’t want it to end,” heard at festivals, folk clubs and sin-
affirms Becky. “We’re going to become garounds, and even a cursory conversation
nomads and stay on the road forever,”
with them leaves you in no doubt that
announces Niopha decisively.
their first love is and will always be tradi-
Artists from the folk and roots worlds
tional song. Their warm and often very
have impinged on the mainstream in vary-
funny stage presentation – itself some-
ing styles and degrees of success down the
thing of a paradox given the doomy
years but, almost uniquely, The Unthanks
weight of so much of the material they
have done it without a conscious thought favour – comes with a smattering of close
of commercial consideration. Indeed, the harmony, unaccompanied vocals and dis-
first suggestion of a crossover break- plays of clog dancing and their joy at
through with the stark debut album Cruel being involved with it is palpable. At last
Sister in 2005 provoked them not into capi- summer’s Cambridge Folk Festival they’d
talising with a chirpier, more obviously arrive on site first thing in the mornings to
populist follow-up, but instead to ever run vocal workshops and spend the rest of
more unyieldingly bleak emotions with the time absorbing in wonder every drop
The Bairns. Yet, far from frightening the of music on offer. However weird and
supposedly limited vision and deadened wonderful the arrangements that materi-
sensibilities of real people in the real Cow- alise around them, the Unthank creed is
ell-brainwashed world, The Bairns took driven by one thing and one thing only –
them several leaps forward. It earned them the power of the song.
a licensing deal with EMI, got lots of air-
And yet… while reviewers seem to
play in places you wouldn’t expect to hear
love them unconditionally, opinions in the
traditional song, was shortlisted for the
folk world that fuelled them appear
Mercury Music Prize (and nearly winning
sharply divided. It’s de rigeur, of course,
it), captured hearts right across the musical
for anyone associated with a specialist
divide and sold at a rate that still makes
genre to be vilified by the denizens of that
Rachel Unthank gulp with astonishment.
genre once they achieve broader populari-
Then, suddenly burdened with a high ty whether they deserve it or not, but The
profile, the pressure of expectation and Unthanks have been subjected to a partic-
very large question marks about whether ularly vitriolic barrage. “We do seem to be
they could survive the departure of their like Marmite – you either love us or hate
hugely popular and influential pianist us,” observes Rachel wryly, recalling the
Belinda O’Hooley, they dared to dare catalogue of criticisms hurled against
again on their third album Here’s The Ten- them, from the frocks they wear on stage
der Coming. A grander affair entirely with to accusations that they’re the puppets of
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