The Hu, Auckland NZ, 2022

The Hu

11th August 2022
Powerstation, Auckland, New Zealand

Review by Mark Derricutt, with photography by Doug Peters. 

Known for having a rather eclectic taste in music, often venturing into avant-garde, foreign languages and bizarre sound structures, it’s no surprise The Hu instantly caught my attention with their “hunnu rock” style. Blending folk metal with traditional Mongolian instrumentation and throat singing with their love of Metallica, I felt more of a rhythmic similarity with German industrial metalers Rammstein, mixed with the folk of Finland’s Korpiklaani when listening – whilst remaining unique and all their own.

With borders fully open, and the release of the new album ‘Rumble Of Thunder’ almost here, The Hu descended on New Zealand’s shores to perform their unique take on folk metal last night.

It’s been a long time since I was last at Auckland’s Powerstation, and due to long ongoing construction for the new train station taking away much needed street parking. I ended up with a ten minute hill climb in the chill air. Marching right past the extended queue of bodies, spotting Team Ambient Light, fellow photographers/reviewers, crew, and it felt like nothing had changed and the world was normal again.

What had changed was the usual makeup of the “typical metal crowd”, with a diverse range of ages and nationalities on show – all there to show their pride, respect, and support of tonight’s performers. This was definitely refreshing to see.

Before we get to The Hu, Shepherds Reign brought their own Samoan culture to the stage. Off the back of winning the new Creative New Zealand award at the Pacific Music Awards last week, as well as recently launching their own headlining tour – opening for The Hu seemed perfectly timed.

A traditional Maori/Samoan sounding recording plays as the band takes position, before launching into ‘Aiga’.

This was the moment I felt home.

I’d almost forgotten what loud, live music felt like – the pummelling riffs of ‘Nafanua’ and ‘Le Manu’ hit me deep in the chest while their words and sentiment hit me in the soul.

Closing with the powerful new ‘Samoa mo Samoa’ – it was a short and seemingly rushed thirty minute set, but the crowd is sated and suitably warmed up for The Hu.

Bathed in red and blue, The Hu enters to chants of “HU HU HU”, and in return the show kicks off, heavy rhythmic beats and that all impressive throat singing. I knew what to expect, or I thought I did. Instantly I’m floored by the intensity, authenticity, and majesty of what I was hearing.

I didn’t have the greatest view from my vantage point due to it being a very full room with little chance to move around, but I caught the ease and casual nature that frontman Nyamjantsan Galsanjamts pulls and replaces finger harps and flutes from pockets adorning his outfit.

It may sound like I’m reviewing another pair of expensive headphones, and this hints both to the musicianship of the band, but also the audio mix in the venue: it’s loud, but not overly loud, lots of vibrato and resonance in that sub/mid bass region, while keeping the rest of the instrumentation separated and spacious.

‘Uchirtai Gurav’ gets everyone dancing, whilst the downstairs crowd bounces up and down like packed sardines. Upstairs has folk forming dance circles around an imaginary fire pit (well, at least that’s the visual I get).

‘Bii Biyelgee’, a cut from the forthcoming album ‘Rumble Of Thunder’ brought a much more heavy vibe to the room, the band driving the intensity as the song closes with a sharp tempo increase, sending the mosh pit crazy, but felt somewhat awkward to me.

My focus seems to drift slightly during ‘Yuve Yuve Yu’, taking in the crowd more than the band and the music, good times, good music, making memories with friends… the minds wandered somewhere…

Thankfully, ‘Wolf Totem’ snaps me out of whatever reverie I’ve lost myself in, and I’m back – ‘Black Thunder’ and ‘This Is Mongol’ gives the crowd a solid dose of what’s to come from the new album.

Closing out the encore with their own interpretation of ‘Sad But True’ by Metallica was the cover I never knew I needed. Rearranged and reworked in a uniquely Hu style, and translated lyrics, the song manages to both remain faithful to the original, and yet never feels forced.

The perfect closing to a perfect gig.

Were you there at the Powerstation for this magnificent Mongolian metal masterpiece? Or have you seen The Hu perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!

The Hu Set List:

1. Shihi Hutu
2. Shoog Shoog
3. Gereg
4. Hohochu Zairan
5. Chinggis Khaan
6. Uchirtai Gurav
7. Shireg Shireg
8. Bii Biyelgee
9. Tatar Warrior
10. Yuve Yuve
11. Wolf Totem
12. Black Thunder
13. This Is Mongol
14. Sad But True [Metallica Cover]

Shepherds Reign Set List:

1. Aiga
2. Ua Masaa
3. Nafanua
4. Le Manu
5. Samoa mo Samoa

_{Note: Ambient Light was provided passes to review and photograph this concert. As always, this has not influenced the review in any way and the opinions expressed are those of Ambient Light’s only. This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase a product using an affiliate link, Ambient Light will automatically receive a small commission at no cost to you.}

If you enjoyed this content, please consider donating towards the running of Ambient Light, covering expenses and allowing us to expand the coverage you love by visiting our PressPatron page.