Mongolian Throat Metal Band

Rock The Glasgow Garage G2

So.. Last weekend (Friday 14th June 2019) the Keep It Rock team headed to see Mongolian Metallers The Hu play an intimate SOLD OUT gig at the Glasgow Garage G2. We arrived, picked up our AAA and Photo passes and headed in to the venue. I had with me my young photographer Mhairi Walsh and my co-reviewer and fellow Hu fan Derek Hunter. The room soon filled up and we found ourselves a cracking spot to the right of the stage where we could see the band and still soak up the atmosphere of the crowd. The band were nowhere near but the crowd had already started chanting “Hu, Hu, Hu…”

The Band Finally Hit The Stage

Unfortunately there was no support act so we had quite a while to wait on The Hu taking the stage. Suddenly, several Mongolians appeared where we were standing and made their way to the stage. They kicked the night off with their latest release Shoog Shoog and the crowd went wild. The Same followed and then The Gereg… surely Wolf Totem would come next? No.. What else did this amazing bunch of musicians have to offer us before performing the song that gathered over 12 MILLION You Tube views?

The Hu Keep The Crowd Waiting

We were entertained with The Song Of Women, where the pace and intensity of the song slowed to allow some inspired and delicate guitar playing to shine through, followed by The Legend of Mother Swan, Uchirtai Gurav and Shireg Shireg. Surely NOW We would be given the songs we craved? No… But we didn’t have long to wait. Another four minutes 20 seconds of Bii Biyley to go and then they hit us! To massive cheers, screams and roars from the crowd – as if trying to mimic a mongol horde – The Hu finally treated us to the thunderous YuveYuve Yu and, before we could recover, their best known track which introduced the world to the band… Wolf Totem.

It is a confident band that chooses to play their hit songs back to back two thirds of the way through to a crowd who haven’t heard anything else, but these guys knew they still had much to give. It’s no surprise that Wolf Totem and Yuve Yuve Yu got the biggest reaction of the night. They slowed things down a bit with The Great Chinggis Khaan and then unleashed the awesome pairing of Black Thunder and This Is The Mongol – which tore the roof off the Garage G2, hammering home that The Hu still have lots to share with us all.

In Conclusion

To say that Hunnu rock landed hard in Glasgow last night would be an understatement. With shouts of “Hello Glasgow” and “Let’s Rock” the band engaged their adoring crowd who responded at the end of every song with roaring applause and chants of “Hu Hu Hu Hu Hu Hu”

This is a band that is doing more than simply laying traditional instruments, two Morin Khuur (2-string horsehead fiddles) and a Tovshuur (2-string bass, for want of a better description) and intricate vocal harmonies on top of rock and metal stylings. This is a band whose culture, history and DNA shapes it’s interpretation of familiar western music tropes. It’s authenticity connects and engages, and overcoming the language barrier with aplomb.

Debut Album “Gereg”

Their debut album Gereg will reach us later this year – around September time – and all of us in the Keep It Rock team cannot wait having had a glimpse of what is to come.

Credits:

Pics: Mhairi Walsh

Review:Dunk MacKellar and Derek Hunter