The Unthanks return to live touring after two years off the road, with the rich and colourful sound of their eleven-piece ensemble showcasing the forthcoming new album 'Sorrows Away', alongside favourites such as 'Magpie', 'The King Of Rome' and 'Mount The Air'.
DLWP is proud to be presenting three shows in May as part of Brighton Festival. Corinne Bailey Rae, Warpaint and The Unthanks will all take place as part of Brighton Festival, as they extend their partnerships across the wider Sussex region.
Brighton Festival returns for 2022 with an extensive international programme of more than 150 events taking place across Sussex from 7-29 May. The 2022 Guest Co-Directors are Syrian architect and author, Marwa Al-Sabouni and Brighton-based theatre artist Tristan Sharps from dreamthinkspeak.
For more information about Brighton festival click here.
Event Timings:
7pm – Auditorium Doors
7.45pm – Set 1
8.45pm – Interval
9.15pm – Set 2
All timings are approximate
Since the release of the technicolour BBC Folk Album of the Year Mount The Air in 2015, The Unthanks have both scaled up to symphonic levels with Charles Hazelwood and the BBC Proms, and stripped down to the unaccompanied singing they grew up with for Diversions Vol 5.
They’ve written six scarecrow soundtracks for Mackenzie Crook’s beautiful adaptation of Worzel Gummidge, while finding time to interpret the work of female writers including Emily Bronte, Molly Drake and Maxine Peake. But projects and diversions aside, Sorrows Away is the long-anticipated follow-up to Mount The Air, and as the title suggests, promises to be a blues-buster and a step into the light for a band known more for melancholy and well, sorrow!
At the nucleus of a constantly evolving unit is the traditional upbringing of Tyneside sisters Rachel and Becky Unthank and the arrangements and writing of composer, pianist, producer and Yorkshireman, Adrian McNally. Descriptions of The Unthanks range variously from “music that asks you to consider everything you know and un-think it”, to “a take on tradition that flips so effortlessly between jazz, classical, ambient and post-rock, it makes any attempt to put a label on them a waste of time”.
Using the traditional music of the North East of England as a starting point, the influence of Miles Davis, Steve Reich, Sufjan Stevens, Robert Wyatt, Antony & The Johnsons, King Crimson and Tom Waits can be heard in the band’s 14 records to date, earning them a Mercury Music Prize nomination and international acclaim along the way.
Folk music can commonly and affectionately be defined as low culture, but The Unthanks aspire to prove that the beauty and truth present in the oral history of the people, is anything but common. Their approach to storytelling makes easy bedfellows of tradition and adventure, direct social commentary and sophisticated harmony, heart-breaking empathy and glacial minimalism, earning them an army of writer and performer admirers including Mackenzie Crook, Maxine Peake, Nick Hornby, Martin Freeman, Elvis Costello, Robert Wyatt, Rosanne Cash, Dawn French, Adrian Edmondson, Stephen Mangan, Colin Firth, Martin Hayes and members of Portishead and Radiohead.
“The Unthanks are capable of such beauty that sometimes I can hardly bear to listen to them.”
Martin Freeman
“There are few times when you discover a band and they stalk immediately to the heart of everything you love and hold dear.”
Maxine Peake
“They run from the very root of folk music to the very tip of the branch.”
Elvis Costello
“It’s quite a rare thing now. They’ve really got everything you could want from music. And I’m very fussy.”
Robert Wyatt
“Few of their contemporaries, within both folk music and the wider artistic spectrum, have such a keenly-honed ability to locate in a song the emotional essence that can, in just a single phrase or vocal elision, cut one to the quick.”
The Independent
“The Unthanks have covered a lot of ground in the past decade and watching them evolve over this period has been truly inspiring.”
Phillip Selway (Radiohead)
“The honest and heartfelt way in which they deliver their music is a true inspiration to me.”
Martin Hayes
“It hits you in your soul rather than your head. I love them.”
Adrian Edmondson
“If there was such a thing still as having a favourite band like in the old days, I’d say they were my favourite band.”
Paul Morley
Please note that Booking Fees apply on the following transactions:
Online: Tickets booked online are subject to booking fees when purchased through our website. E-tickets are emailed instantly on the account you have registered with DLWP, please check your Junk folder if they don’t arrive within 30 minutes. Customers can also download their tickets through our website within ‘My Account’.
Telephone: £3.50 per transaction + £2 postage or free collection at the Box Office.
In Person: There are currently no charges for booking tickets in person.
There is a £2 charge to post tickets.
We strongly recommend ticket buyers to take out Ticket Protection insurance with Secure My Booking available when you book your tickets at check out.
Please note that we are only able to post tickets within the UK. If you live overseas please select box office collection or print at home tickets. Tickets purchased for post will be sent 10 – 14 days before the show date.
Full terms and conditions can be found here.
Book online: Pre-show dining can be booked online as an add-on when purchasing tickets for selected events. You will be purchasing a ticket to guarantee your meal before the show.
Please note you must be a ticket holder to the show to book pre-show dining.
Already booked your tickets? If you’ve already booked tickets for a show and would like to add dining, please contact Box Office: boxoffice@dlwp.com
On the night: If you have pre-booked please come to the bar to order from the gig menu and sit at one of the reserved tables.
Please be aware that we operate no re-entry for gigs. This means that once you have entered the building, you cannot go out and re-enter. This policy is in line with other major music venues across the UK and put in place on police advice. No re-entry is clearly signposted as you come through security on the front door.
There is a fenced-off area on the terrace for people who go out to smoke or vape.
There are plenty of welcoming and good value B&Bs & boutique hotels in Bexhill. The De La Warr Pavilion regularly uses the following:
- By Rail
Direct trains go from London Victoria, Brighton and Ashford to Bexhill.
There are also trains from London Charing Cross, changing at St. Leonards Warrior Square and from London Bridge or Charing Cross going to Battle. Battle is only a short taxi journey away (15 mins approx).
Visit www.nationalrail.co.uk for up-to-date train travel information. - Taxis
Town Taxis: 01424 211 511
Parkhurst Taxis: 01424 733 456 - By Car
If driving from the London area:
Take the M25, then A21 to Hastings. Turn off at John‘s Cross and follow the signs to Bexhill.
OR
Take the A22 to Eastbourne, go across the Bishop roundabout to the A271 and follow the signs to Bexhill and the seafront. The De La Warr Pavilion is on the Marina.
From the Brighton area:
Follow the A27 out of Brighton until you arrive in Bexhill On Sea. - Parking
Please be aware the Rother District car park outside the De La Warr Pavilion operates paid parking until 7pm. After this time parking is free.
Within the limits of this Grade One listed building, the De La Warr Pavilion strives to be fully accessible with a range of facilities to support your visit.
Assistance Dogs are permitted into the building.
Please contact the Box Office on boxoffice@dlwp.com to arrange a visit.
Facilities for disabled visitors
- Ramped access at the front of the building
- A low counter at the Box Office and Information Desk
- Disabled toilets on two floors
- A lift to all floors
- Accessible galleries on both floors
- An accessible Café
- Spaces for wheelchairs in the auditorium for seated events
- Ramped access in the auditorium for events during the day
- Ramped access into the Studio
- Two travel wheelchairs are available for use at the De La Warr Pavilion. To reserve, please call our box office and information desk on (01424) 229111 or ask a member of staff on arrival. The chairs are provided on a first come, first served basis and are intended for use inside the Pavilion. Please contact us for more information.
Facilities for blind or visually-impaired
- Large print season brochures
Facilities for the hard-of-hearing
- An T-Switch induction loop in some areas of the auditorium (please indicate when booking as this facility is not available on the balcony)
- British Sign Language interpretation tours of the building and exhibitions are available on request.