Since emerging in 2005 under the Rachel Unthank & the Winterset moniker, Northumbrian folk group the Unthanks have grown steadily ambitious, adding layers of nuance to their already evocative sound, which trades in jazz, classical, and pop as much as it does traditional English folk music. Lines, Vols. 1-3 continues to look to the past for inspiration, yet it does so with a contemporary flair, deftly utilizing the airy, chamber pop stylings of musical arranger and producer Adrian McNally. Volume 1 was originally written ...
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Since emerging in 2005 under the Rachel Unthank & the Winterset moniker, Northumbrian folk group the Unthanks have grown steadily ambitious, adding layers of nuance to their already evocative sound, which trades in jazz, classical, and pop as much as it does traditional English folk music. Lines, Vols. 1-3 continues to look to the past for inspiration, yet it does so with a contemporary flair, deftly utilizing the airy, chamber pop stylings of musical arranger and producer Adrian McNally. Volume 1 was originally written for the theater piece The Last Testament of Lillian Bilocca , who was a British fisheries worker and a campaigner for improved safety at sea following the 1968 trawler disaster in Kingston upon Hull that took the lives of 58 men. The five-song set delivers plenty of atmosphere, with the multifaceted "A Whistling Woman" leaning hard into the group's penchant towards progressive folk-pop, and the languid, electric piano-led "Lonesome Cowboy" giving off some serious Twin Peaks vibes. The second volume was composed in 2014 to mark the opening year of the World War I centenary, and features an excellent guest vocal from frequent collaborator Sam Lee on the heartfelt "Roland and Vera," and adopts a more musical theater-forward approach on the rousing "Everybody Sang." The third and most consistent volume puts the words of beloved English novelist and poet Emily Brontė to music, with highlights arriving via the elliptical and transfixing title track and the melody-rich "High Waving Heather" and "She Dried Her Tears and They Did Smile". ~ James Christopher Monger, Rovi
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