The HU blends heavy metal, with Mongolian throat singing, and traditional Mongolian instruments, to create a unique metal sound. The group hailing from Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia has been disrupting the airwaves since their debut singles (‘Yuve Yuve Yu’ and ‘Wolf Totem’) went viral in 2018 gifting the band over 25 million and 37 million views respectively. Their debut album ‘The Gereg’ came out late last year and their subsequent 23 date European tour has sold out on every date sending the band into high acclaim.
The band gave an excellent performance to a packed-out venue playing through their debut album and a few extra songs too. They had an impressive presence and a big sound with eight band members on stage. The HU’s use of traditional Mongolian singing and instruments blended well over metal guitar and drums and the variety in songwriting has established them as a band to look out for.
I was impressed with their ability to interchange between metal and traditional Mongolian passages in songs and it seemed much thought had gone into how they merge the two styles. It’s brilliant to see newcomers to the metal scene being so warmly welcomed too. The sold-out show had people who were familiar with their catalogue and I think that’s brilliant to see for a band new to the scene. At some moments the crowd was louder than the band and it was clear they were thriving in the atmosphere.
The HU is doing something unique that works incredibly well. The deep throat singing fits perfectly into the heavy metal sound and I’m keen to see where they go with their next album. I’d love to hear some acoustic performances that let the Mongolian instruments shine without amplification. Then again, I’d also love to see how heavy they can go, a fusion of throat singing over music in a similar vein to Morbid Angel would be crazy.
If you haven’t heard about them already, they are worth checking out just for their incredible throat singing. In fact, the quartet who founded the band have gone on to meet the Mongolian President and win the highest state award in Mongolia for promoting Mongolian culture worldwide. Expect big things from this group as we enter the new decade.
The HU are still on tour and you can see their tour dates here.