The group was born in 2016, so its history is not long yet, but they have noticed that they did not erase from their career the two years when the concert activity had to be postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic – Mongolian folk metallers YouTube introduced the world to its national cuisine on the channel (Hu’s In The Kitchen?).
Similar to other countries that were ruled by communists for much of the 20th century, from 1924 to 1992 access to Western European culture, including music such as jazz and rock, was denied in Mongolia, and promotion of Mongolian folk music was also limited. Everything changed after the Mongolian revolution in 1990, with the onset of a financial crisis (as happens everywhere when the old system is destroyed but the new system has not yet been mastered), but more and more outside information began to flow into the chaos, including cultural expressions in the US and Western Europe. Singer Bayarmagnai “Dashka” Dashdondog created the group in 2016, taking on the duties of producer and songwriter himself, and choosing the other members from among the students of the Mongolian State Conservatory of Music and Dance, who learned the tradition called throat singing and also played ethnic musical instruments. The Hu (in Mongolian “hu” means “man”) the basic composition has remained unchanged and still works in it:
- Galbadrakh “Gala” Tsendbaatar – throat singing, horsehead violin (horsehead fiddle),
- Nyamjantsan “Jaya” Galsanjamts – organ, recorder, throat singing,
- Enkhsaikhan “Enkush” Batjargal – Horsehead Fiddle, Throat Singing.
- Temuulen “Temka” Naranbaatar – tovshuur (a leather-covered two-stringed wooden instrument played by 13th-century Mongols for pitrm battles), vocals, backing vocals.
On tours, the band is joined by four other men who play traditional rock instruments – guitars and basses, drums and percussion, and also sing backing vocals. The band’s idea was to play what was denied in the country in previous decades heavy metal genre music, not by copying already known genre groups, but by continuing to study and carefully find available resources from Mongolian traditional culture, integrating them as much as possible into rock music, which made them unique and interesting to the whole world. They called their style hun rock, drawing inspiration from the history of our country – from the Hun Empire (3rd century BC – 1st century AD).
The Hu published the first two songs on the channel YouTube at the end of 2018 – Yuve Yuve Yu and Wolf Totem, which reached number one the following spring Billboard’s Hard Rock Digital Song Sales top, The Hu becoming the first Mongolian musicians in history to be Billboard in the top, where even many famous musicians in Europe never make it. The other song Yuve Yuve Yu ranked seventh in the same popularity list, while Wolf Totem already stepped up to the next level, debuting at #22 Billboard’s Hot Rock Songs in the top.
In the same year of the first success The Hu already met with the President of Mongolia, who commended them for promoting his country, before embarking on their first tour of twenty-three concerts in twelve European countries, which concluded with the release of The Hu the fourth single The Great Chinggis Khaan – a hymn to a great countryman, during which the Mongol Empire became the largest empire in human history with an area of more than 33 million km² – it occupied most of the Eurasian landmass from the Pacific Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and from the Indian Ocean to the Arctic Circle.
The Hu debut album The Greg came out on September 13. The word used in the title Greg also taken from history – this is what the diplomatic passport was called in the times of Genghis Khan. The album was released by a US record company Eleven Seven Records, and throughout the rest of 2019, the group performed intensively in North America, on November 27 they even managed to receive the highest award of the Mongolian state – the Order of Genghis Khan (Order of Genghis Khan) for bringing Mongolian culture to the world.
Knowing the habits of the majority of people to choose tested values, The Hu began to cooperate with English singers – songs Yuve Yuve Yu’s new version was sung by Danny Case (Danny Case) from From Ashes to Newbut Wolf Totem rparticipated in the emix Papa Roach lead vocalist Djikobi Shadik Jacoby Shaddix) – this version was included in horror films The Retaliators on the soundtrack, but Song of Women the bands featured in the remix Halestorm voice of vocalist Elizabeth “Lizzy” Hale. During the 2020 Australian tour The Hulike the rest of the world at the time, was stopped by the restrictions of the Covid-19 pandemic, but the group continued to work on the single Black Thunder and started a video series Hu’s in the Kitchen, showing off your cooking skills YouTube and also giving a virtual charity concert there, also announcing plans to release a second album in July 2021. Their songs The Legend of Mother Swan a version performed by Danish black metal artist Myrkur was used in a video game The Sims 4but on December 3 The Hu released a cover version Metallica for the song Sad but True, selected as one of the 53 artists who earned the honor of participating in the group Metallica the most famous – in the thirtieth anniversary edition of the black album The Metallica Blacklist, where they perform as well Through the Never – all income from the album was donated to charity. In September, they returned to North America in their Hun Tour, The Hu resumed live concerts after the pandemic, also playing songs from the then-unexpected second album rumble of thunder, which songwriter Dashka describes as inspired by modern society and ancient history.
A video for the song was released in early 2023 This Is Mongol (Warrior Souls)which featured William Duvall on lead vocals and rhythm guitar (William DuVall) from the group Alice in Chains, in turn Black Thunder participated by Daniel DL Laskiewicz from Bad Wolves and Serzh Tankian (Serj Tankian) from the famous group of Armenians living in the USA System of a Down. British celebrities in March 2024 heavy metal veterans Iron Maiden announced that The HU will warm them up Future Past touring North American concerts.
The HU music used in two Star Wars in video games – Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (2019) and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (2023). Some songs – Hohochu, Sugaan Essena (Black Thunder) and Eseerin Vasakhina play groups Agasar in performance. “We all are Star Wars fans. We started watching movies as children and we all wanted to be like Luke Skywalker, because this character also motivated us to be strong and honest people,” Gala Tsendbaatar said in 2020 in the media Revolver.
Songs Sugaan Essen the words at concerts in Europe and North America were performed in the original Mongolian language, but later for the needs of the game they rewrote the text into an alien language, which is said to be too difficult to sing in concerts.
Tickets are available from May 3 in the Ticket Service Network.
Tags: Mongolian folk metal group Diena perform Palladium concert hall
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