Interview with The Hu pre-Download Australia 2020.
Interview with The Hu pre-Download Australia 2020.
The HU is a band from Mongolia that blends hard rock
and traditional Mongolian throat singing.
Their first two videos Yuve Yuve Yu and
Wolf Totem immediately went viral garnering the band over 30 million views. The
explosive reaction to The HU resulted in enthusiastic coverage from media all
over the world.
Together they create rock music with
traditional Mongolian instrumentation such as the Morin Khuur (horsehead
fiddle), Tovshuur (Mongolian guitar), Tumur Khuur (jaw harp), guttural throat
singing built around the pillars of heavy rock: distorted guitars, bombastic
drums, and aggressive rhythms.
What makes this band so damn original is their
overall sound combines regional traditional music that loosely sounds like folk
crossed with blues mixed with very strong metal and rock influences. It simply
cannot be compared to any other band. Plus it rocks damn hard.
So when we had the chance to interview this
band, we jumped at it. Passionate and very genuine people and they are
exceptionally excited to play Download Australia 2020.
Add them on your must-see list for the day of the festival as well as two sideshows in Adelaide and
Brisbane.
Check this interview out!!!
The Hu interview:
Things have been pretty busy for you since
the release of your excellent debut album, The Gereg in September last year,
talk us through the crazy pace and the amazingly positive reviews you have
received in since then. I mean it’s incredible for the album to chart well all
over the world and even endorsements from Elton John!, how’s that feel to you?.
It’s a dream come true feeling. Being
praised by him means everything to us. He’s a true rock legend and more
importantly an amazing human being. When we had a facetime call with him, he
was super gracious, and we can’t believe that he loves our music.
Your music is a very solid mix of
traditional and modern music, and that intersection is unique as well as
respecting your cultural background, tell us about how the band came about and
how you found your sound?. Also what makes The HU sound like the HU? Your music
seems to not have limitations or clearly defined boundaries that most modern
music has.
In 2016, the four band members together
with Dashka started working on the first few songs. Creating and arranging
these songs helped us find the sound we were looking for. We call our style The
Hunnu Rock which is a blend of Mongolian traditional music and contemporary
Rock music. Eastern meets western and the past meets present. The genre is very
dynamic it contains elements of traditional Mongolian music, metal, classic
rock and frankly there’s no boundaries. The most unique thing about the style
is the Mongolian throat singing, which is an amazing sound that humans make
which creates the upper and lower harmony together.
The inspiration behind our music is from
our Mongolian culture that is rich with thousands of years of history. Some of
our songs contain old Mongolian rock inscriptions and war cries. Our message to
the world via our music is reminding the importance of showing gratitude to
your parents, loving your homeland, protecting the nature, loving and
respecting women, respecting your country history and ancestors, and finally
giving individuals an inner power and belief for their future.
What was each member's musical journey, what
bands got you initially into music and more so into heavy music?. I understand
all members are formally trained as musicians which is obviously a massive
benefit given both the complexity of your music and the regional instruments
you play on the album and live.
Each one of us has his own unique journey
to rock and metal music. We all graduated conservatory and have years of
performing experiences all around the world. It helps us every aspect of the
our artistry.
Why do you think Heavy music is such a rewarding
and sustaining genre worldwide? Should music be a powerful force that inspires
as well as entertains?.
Music should and is quite a powerful
force that unites everyone. For us, music has not only given a change to
entertain around the world but is also a vessel to share our culture and
message, and for that we are grateful and honored.
You have been selling out tours all over
the world, achieving remarkable physical and digital sales and this year you
are coming to our glorious Download festival in Australia, do you sometimes
find it hard to grasp how well received your band has been? And do you know
much about Australian heavy music?.
Absolutely, we really appreciate the
amount of support we have been receiving all over the world and in countries
such as Australia that Mongolian music hasn’t had much exposure. We still can’t
believe that we will be sharing our music live with our Australian fans and are
really excited to come to see everyone in person. We love Australia and music
such as AC/DC.
Lyrically what sort of themes does the band
sing about? There definitely seems some important threads about nature and
respectfully acknowledging cultural identity. Also what does the band name mean
or symbolise?.
See answer #3. Hu is the root word for
human being in Mongolian language. We chose this name because of the inclusive
nature of the word. We would like to share our music with everyone in the world
without any exclusions.
What are some of your favorite albums
currently or all time metal classics?.
Back in Black, Powerslave, Master of
Puppets, and Cowboys from Hell.
The HU are endlessly touring, but in terms
of the second album; have you any concepts or ideas for the next album and can
we except any musical differences or change on this?.
Yes, we have been working on the next
album concept and ideas in the time between touring and even during the tour.
We have been playing a few songs from our next album during our live shows. The
theme and music will still be Hunnu Rock!
How are you finding the balance between
lengthy tours and downtime(and hobbies/family commitments), because many
artists find this a tricky tightrope to manage?.
Much like all other bands, finding the
balance is a challenge but our families are very understanding and supportive
which really gives us the fuel to keep going.
Art and music should compliment each other,
how important is the art form ( be it album art or videos) for the band?.
Music itself is art. The visual
component has also been crucial to our band’s success and the message we want
to share. It also gives us a great platform to express our music since most of
our listeners don’t speak Mongolian.
Australia is very excited for your debut
performances at Download 2020, any final messages or thoughts for your fans?.
Sain uu Australia! We are coming to see
you in March 2020 in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. We are super
excited to share our music live with our Australian fans and thank you all for
all the love and support! And thanks so much for your time!!.
Check out this incredible video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jM8dCGIm6yc
and catch their two sideshows prior to Download:
Monday, March 16
The Gov, Adelaide SA
Tuesday, March 17
The Tivoli, Brisbane QLD
and Download Australia 2020 is just around the corner, so grab those tickets and embrace the heaviness of this music we love.
https://www.downloadfestival.com.au/tickets
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