The Unthanks With Brighouse and Rastrick Brass Band: Diversions Vol 2 – review

The Unthanks , a vocal duo from the north-east who've covered Antony and the Johnsons , now join forces with a colliery band for a suite that spans mining life and fatherhood. Recorded live on their recent tour, the voices of sisters Becky and Rachel Unthank take something of a back seat to Rachel's husband Adrian McNally's new-found ambition to arrange for brass. The emotional clout is undeniable. Trimdon Grange Explosion commemorates a mining disaster with restraint, while The Father's Suite finds McNally closing the circle between his father, his newborn and himself with only a little too much stateliness.