(RNS) 鈥� An eight-man heavy metal band from Mongolia known as 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鈥檚 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 鈥� The Hu is the first Mongolian band to top a Billboard chart (in 2019 and they鈥檝e been streamed 780 million times on Spotify 鈥� 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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But underlying their Hun metal demonstrativeness is a shamanist spirituality and their devotion to the chief embodiment of sky deity Tengri, a folk pantheism they share with some 5% of Mongolians.
About 50% of the populace is Tibetan Buddhist, 40% are atheist (thanks no doubt to 70 years of Communism under the Soviets), with the remaining 10% evangelical Christians, Tengrists/shamans, Muslims, Mormons and a sliver of Catholics.
In the Mongolian tradition, shamans use rituals and trance states to communicate with the dead or spiritual beings. Although the players don鈥檛 claim to be shamans, the pounding 鈥淪hoog, Shoog,鈥� one of their early songs, is the shamanic call to ancestral spirits.
Front man Temuulen 鈥淭emka鈥� Naranbaatar, 34, who plays an electric 鈥渢ovshuur,鈥� a gold-embossed three-stringed lute, said he was on a spiritual search about the time he joined up with the band in 2016. 鈥淚 was not much of a believer if you will,鈥� he said through a translator in a pre-show interview in Tacoma. 鈥淚 was curious what the Christian church had to offer and just visited with my friends a couple of times. But it was nothing more than that.鈥�
His musical journey, however, brought Temka in contact with songwriter and producer Bayarmagnai Dashdondog, a veteran in the Mongolian pop music industry. Temka, then 26, and the other young men who would form The Hu, clicked with the nature religion described in Dashdondog鈥檚 lyrics.
鈥淭he traditions of Tengerism are very interconnected to our culture, to our nomadic life,鈥� Temka said. 鈥淭he nomadic way of life also affects how your brain works 鈥� that is how my brain works; that is why I am who I am today.鈥�
Dashdondog, the mastermind behind the group鈥檚 rise, is in his 50s. Band members have described him as a man who has traveled back to his roots in Mongolia鈥檚 western Khovd province to write songs for his father and ancestors. His compositions for The Hu are aided by 鈥渕y parents and my ancestors,鈥� in 2022.
Songs such as 鈥淭his is the Mongol鈥� and 鈥淯pright Destined Mongol鈥� laud the 鈥済lory of our ancestors鈥� and describe 鈥渁ncestors who thrived worshipping the sacred mountain Khaldun,鈥� believed to be Genghis Khan鈥檚 birthplace.
鈥淔or us, Tengerism is a belief system that our ancestors are looking over us, but it does not necessarily mean we have a certain Bible or any other religion or a Quran,鈥� said Temka. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a belief that 鈥� we are guided through our ancestor spirits.鈥�
In mid-2018, Dashdondog sent his proteges on a 3,100-mile trek through western Mongolia, where they taped Yuve, Yuve, Yu, a stunning video filled with dramatic landscapes.
It was a smash hit. The world couldn鈥檛 get enough of what looked like four Huns in black leather or brown tunics, or 鈥渄eels,鈥� interwoven with metal studs, buckles, chains, bones and feathers. A drone captures them striding about in upturned traditional 鈥済utal鈥� boots, hair braids flying, and hoisting all manner of exotic stringed instruments while singing about prophecy and the second coming of Genghis Khan.
That was followed by The Wolf Totem, a bestselling video showcasing a man on a horse carrying a black Mongolian war banner, followed by a posse of stern leather-clad men on motorcycles doing war chants. YouTube views soared into the millions.
Dashdondog鈥檚 influence clearly looms large, but the actual religious composition of the band is somewhat vague. When The Hu formed in 2016, two of the four additional members, Temka said, had Christian backgrounds. Guitarist Jambaldorj 鈥淛amba鈥� Ayush, he said, used to attend a Christian school; Odbayar 鈥淥dko鈥� Gantumur was a drummer for a church. Enkhsaikhan 鈥淓nkush鈥� Batjargal, a front band member who plays a box-shaped horse fiddle known as the 鈥渕orin khuur,鈥� grew up Buddhist, Temka added.
A dive into Odko鈥檚 Facebook page revealed Christian-friendly posts in 2012, such as music from the Australian band Hillsong and a post that reads 鈥淲ith God, all things are possible.鈥�
Temka swears it all works when it comes to making music. 鈥淲e have a very high tolerance in terms of religious differences,鈥� he said. 鈥淎ll of us match our energy together.鈥�
When asked what this looks like in the day-to-day life of the band, Temka said the group gathers about 10 minutes before their show to call down energy and shout out the word 鈥渉u,鈥� which 鈥渉elps us be in sync on stage all together.鈥�
鈥淲e do call on our ancestors in that chant together,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here are eight people. We try to match our energies and try to bring them on stage. That helps us give the energy to our audience and helps them understand the meaning of the words without having to translate the words.鈥�
Julia Duin, The Associated Press
