From the steppes with shamanism: The Hu makes hits with praises to the sky deity

(RNS) — An eight-man heavy metal band from Mongolia known as The Hu has done what few thought could happen in the 21st century: Create a new genre of folk-metal music. Decked out in black war regalia out of the 13th century, they sing invocations to a Mongolian sky deity and odes to 13th century warlord Genghis Khan.

Not that anyone seems to really notice. At a recent performance opening for heavy metal superstars Iron Maiden at the Tacoma Dome in Washington state, the band’s lead singers, winging their long black hair to the raucous beat, belt out their lyrics in a deep guttural drone-like style known as throat singing. In Mongolian.

Their success — The Hu is the first Mongolian band to top a Billboard chart (in 2019 and they’ve been streamed 780 million times on Spotify — arguably has little to do with their message, which includes thoughts on war, destiny and climate change. It has everything to do with their style, beginning with their impressive entrance under a black Mongolian war banner and their wild-horse-steppe Mongolian vibe.

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