The Unthanks are a five-piece band from Northumberland who have released their eighth album Mount The Air. We spoke to Rachel Unthank, singer and wife of other band member Adrian McNally

What are you doing to prepare for the tour?

Well I've just had my hair cut and I'm going to have a day with children doing some painting. But other than that we are rehearsing a little bit, and will be doing a lot more before the first show.

Your new album, Mount The Air, is out now and has had amazing reviews. Do you read them?

Well I try not to because if I read the good and believe them, then I have to read the bad and believe them too. But obviously if there is a great review around then it's hard not to have a look. It's lovely to be well-received because you feel like you've been successful in communicating your ideas and that people have understood what you're trying to do. That's always great.

Your last three albums have been part of the Diversions Series, where you've reinterpreted songs by the likes of Robert Wyatt and Antony Hegarty. Was it good to work on your own songs again?

It was, yes. Mount The Air is full of songs we've written – and we have all written songs this time, Becky, Adrian and I, whereas it would normally be Adrian. Plus we've also done what we normally do with reworking traditional songs. Becky went to Cecil Sharp House, the folk history collection in London, did some digging and found some incredible songs that we used as a foundation. She found a book from Dorset that we used as a basis for a few songs, adding more and arranging.

What was the idea behind Mount The Air before you started work on it?

Well we had done those Diversions albums, so we knew we wanted to do our songs again, and because we'd released those albums we knew we could take some time over it. Normally we'd be chasing our tails, but we had some more freedom now. Becky and I gathered as much material as we could, found songs we wanted to sing and stories we wanted to tell, and Adrian was in touch with the Foundling Museum for some resources. Becky wrote a song, and I did too. I wrote a lullaby. So there were lots of ideas. Niopha (Keegan, violin) also wrote a song for her dad, and Chris (Price, guitar) did too.

Songwriting is a new thing for you and Becky

Yes. Because we grew up in the folk tradition, singing at festivals and exploring those old songs, we were always surrounded by songs we'd never heard, or that other people hadn't heard, and there were always stories we wanted to tell. I never really felt the need to write songs before because there were so many others I wanted to sing.

You and Adrian have not long had another baby. How old is he?

He's one just before we start the tour. It was interesting having a baby while recording an album. But you have to embrace whatever life throws at you. We have a studio in a little hamlet in Northumberland, and we've turned an old granary into our studio. That meant that I could just stroll along to the studio from the house, put Arthur down to sleep and have a little sing. It was very relaxed, and it also meant Adrian had somewhere to escape to. We can't really work at home now when there are two children crying in the background.

And you can tell Arthur when he's older that he was there when it was recorded...

Yes. And our eldest, who is three, likes to refer to Mount The Air as "our album" so they already feel involved. Having babies presents challenges, especially in the sleep department, but I'm very lucky that I can do both things at the same time.

  • The Unthanks are headliners at the Deer Shed Festival, July 24 to 25, Baldersby Park, Topcliffe, North Yorkshire. Box Office: deershedfestival.com