Americana Alt.Country CD Reviews

The Dunwells
EP 'Show Me Emotion'
(Concord Records, 2014)

Although it seemed like The Dunwells appeared from out of nowhere with their very successful debut album 'Blind Sighted Faith' (2012), they do have a musical history. The band members started out playing pubs separately in Leeds, England. The two brothers, Joseph and David Dunwell, had been performing as solo acts throughout Yorkshire. The Dunwell brothers recruited childhood friend Jonny Lamb (drums), along with local musicians David Hanson (lead guitar) and Lee Dawson (bass). When a booking agent heard them play an open mic together, she insisted on booking them a show as a group. In October 2009, record producer Dave Creffield formalized their band status by recording them. Rob Clayton, Jonny Lamb's cousin and high school friend, later took Lee Dawson's place on the bass, after Dawson left the band in 2011. Joseph and David Dunwell and Rob Clayton all attended St. Mary's Catholic High School in Menston.

The Dunwells recorded live at ITV Studios in 2009 and also performed on BBC Radio Leeds during the same year. After releasing their self funded debut single 'Elizabeth' in March 2010 (which reached number 31 in the UK Indie Chart), English singer-songwriter Tony Moore spotted the band while they were playing at The Bedford in London. Moore invited the group to the 2011 Folk Alliance International Conference in Memphis, Tennessee. After performing stateside, The Dunwells signed with the Austin, Texas based label Playing In Traffic Records in May 2011. They released their debut album 'Blind Sighted Faith' on 14 February 2012 after recording in Willie Nelson's Pedernales studio with producer John Porter. In June 2012, Playing In Traffic Records struck a joint venture for The Dunwells with Concord Music Group, enlisting the help of George Drakoulias to record the single "So Beautiful". Playing In Traffic Records in conjunction with Concord Music Group re-released 'Blind Sighted Faith' on 28 August 2012 with the addition of "So Beautiful". I checked and I have the earliest version, without "So Beautiful", in my collection.

The Dunwells have played at various renowned venues and festivals, including opening for Mumford & Sons and also playing South By SouthWest in March 2012. After commencing their Summer tour in Austin, Texas in June 2012, the band has been traveling throughout the US and UK, including performances at Austin City Limits, Red Rocks and Lollapalooza. The Dunwells made their US Network Television debut in August 2012, performing their song "Follow The Road" on NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

The debut album of The Dunwells was praised for its modern British spin on American roots music. The singing has been compared with Crosby, Stills & Nash and with Mumford & Sons. After several years of playing music together and a time of intensive touring, they make an effort to develop and refine their sound, best described as folk rock. They re-emerge with this special 4-song digital EP entitled 'Show Me Emotion'. Drawn together by their shared love of acts like Bon Iver, Elbow and Damien Rice, they looked to broaden their sound with these new songs. Joseph Dunwell explains: “We wanted to get away from the Americana sound we had been labeled with, stripping back the acoustic guitars, going deeper, Steve seemed like the perfect man for the job." The band was inspired to work with producer Steve Harris (Kaiser Chiefs, Dave Matthews) after hearing the Kodaline song “High Hopes”. Looking to track him down, the band heard they’d missed him by just a few hours after a gig in Seattle. In a strange twist of fate, it turns out that Harris lives in Yorkshire, the same county where the band resides in Leeds. Soon after, upon hearing the band’s demos he was on board. Despite the hectic schedule of constantly being on the road throughout the last year, the band found time to write new material, mostly during late nights in hotel rooms. The collaboration of The Dunwells with Harris has resulted in a passionate set of songs with heartfelt lyrics that perfectly suit the band’s trademark four-part harmonies. Joseph commented on the process: “We were eager to start playing and recording new material and we knew we had loads more to give. This EP marks a change in the band, a massive leap forward in my eyes. ‘Show Me Emotion’ says it all really.”