Every time the Unthanks come up, or indeed any young band, they have an incendiary quality on the board. It's fair to say there's nothing abnormal in what they do, if they sing traditional songs they're folk singers, if they don't they are light entertainers or pop or whatever euphemism you wish to bestow but there's nothing inherently 'wrong' with their performances. So why the inflammability?

Well clearly it's because people choose to press the ignite button. The reason is purely one of resenting their exposure or believing a performer should somehow 'represent' folk music. It's odd that the UK doesn't have any national scale traditional music broadcast medium but Britons seem to prefer commercial music of one kind or another. The talk of selling souls is nonsense, if you appeal to a large enough number The Maaan will pick you up - if you want to be picked up - and if you don't you'll have to plot whatever route through obscurity you can muster.

For myself, there's something peculiar about expecting to make a career out of singing tradition songs. Do it for love absolutely and if you're gifted and beautiful enough to be the one in ten thousand that makes a living good luck to you, but *expecting* a career from it sounds like the old 'Coronation Programme Seller' joke.