Gig review: THE DUNWELLS – Harwell Village Hall, 16 October 2026

October 17th, 2026 by jason

Great to see another sold out Big Ginger Tom Music promoted gig at Harwell Village Hall. Proof that you can still keep the grassroots scene going, although it is getting harder and harder to maintain.

Roswell Road, ta duo consisting of Jasmine Watkiss and Zoë Wren, and having seen them support Kathryn Priddy at this venue last year, became a firm fan. Their set tonight included a lot of songs from their debut album, ‘Rebel Joy’, which was released earlier this year and produced by the Dunwells.

Their vocal harmonies are spot on and a joy to hear on ‘Weirdo at the Party’, ‘Holy Mountain’ and a personal favourite, ‘Arabella’. The latter for the vocal harmonies on the chorus which sound just as good live as they do on the album.

‘Bolder’ is a sea shanty, although based on real life events and makes for a perfect chance for the audience to join in on the chorus (in piratical voices if they could as encouraged by Roswell Road!). They did a sterling version of the Cranberries’ ‘Dreams’ as an encore.

A perfect opening set from Roswell Road and if they appear near to you, go along and see them, or give their album a listen on your music streaming service of choice.

This reviewer first came across the Dunwells at their 2012 gig at the Bowery, London and have bene a fan of their music ever since. Back then they were a five piece band, now down to the two brothers, Joe and David, and after years performing live together they put on one of the best live performances you are likely to see in the Americana meets folk genre.

Like the support act, Roswell Road, the Dunwells rely heavily of their vocals and the way they combine seamlessly to create some wonderful vocal harmonies. Set openers ‘Break My Fall’ and ‘Short Stories’ are perfect examples of this.

Their first set including a couple of new songs from their upcoming fifth studio album due next year. First of these ‘Nineties Kids’, which is released as a single at the end of this month. An upbeat number, which was warmly received by the audience along with ‘I.O.U.’ Both songs bode well for the new album.

They performed a set that delved into all their albums to date, including their US hit ‘I Could Be a King’, which dates back to 2011 and ‘Animal’ and ‘Communicate’, two of the strongest tunes off their 2016 release ‘Light Up the Sky’.

With two sets from the lads we were spoilt and their choice of songs was spot on getting a rousing reception from the crowd, none more so than on ‘Lucky Ones’ and ‘See You Soon’. The in-between banter between Joe and David is always humorous as they don’t take themselves too seriously, apart from when it comes to the music. In fact, in a parallel universe they would make a decent comedy duo if they weren’t such top class musicians.

They closed their set with ‘Elizabeth’ which they played right in front of the audience and it was another chance for the crowd to show off their backing vocals!

A fantastic night of live music and proof that grassroots music can thrive given the right support from promoters, artists and fans alike.

The Dunwells are a magical force of musical nature, well worth getting along to see whenever they play near to you.

Review by Jason Ritchie
Photos by Duncan Chappell

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Josh now hosts “Taerk’s Tracks” as part of the Singer Songwriter Sunday sequence on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio.

This is the first show broadcast on 27 September. Josh presents some of his inspirational artists and tracks.

David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 20 September 2026.

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More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com

Power Plays w/c 12 October 2026

TAKEDA – Lion’s Den (Drongo Records)
SCARDUST – Symphony (Frontiers)
AMBERLIN – Gravity (Rude Records/Equal Vision Records)
MISSING TOYS – Lifeline (Pride & Joy Music)
SWEET GORILLA – It’s Your Life (5000 Records)
ROYAL BLOOD – Dead Company (Warner Records)

Featured Albums w/c 12 October 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)

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