Who: Pronounced 'The Who,' The Hu is four-piece metal band (with four additional touring members) from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, that pays homage to its native land through all aspects of its music. Vocals are performed in a traditional Mongolian throat singing style atop a meld of Eastern and Western instrumentation. Some of the unique instruments used by The Hu include a horsehead fiddle, jaw harp, end-blown flute and two-string lute. Lyrically, the songs focus lyrically on the customs and history of Mongolia.
Breakout: The Hu's first two songs—"Yuve Yuve Yu" and "Wolf Totem"—were released with accompanying videos on YouTube in October 2018 and have since combined for more than 50 million views. That has led to the act routinely being described as a "viral sensation," but The Hu truly cemented its rising star status by hitting the European festival circuit this past summer, drawing big crowds and rave reviews at calendar cornerstones like England's Download Festival and Germany's Rock am Ring. The Hu is in the middle of its first North American tour, for which more than half the dates have sold out.
Accolades: Despite being so new, The Hu has racked up a level of recognition many artists never achieve. The band received quite the co-sign in October, when Elton John played latest single "The Great Chinggis Khaan," on his Beats 1 radio show and declared, "They sound amazing. Don't ever say I don't introduce you to new sounds." More meaningfully, in November the Office of the President of Mongolia bestowed The Hu with the Order of Genghis Khan, the country's highest award, reserved for those who study, preserve and strengthen the national culture.
Watch: The music videos, which largely follow the musicians traversing the beautiful Mongolian wilderness, probably serve as the best introductions to the band. The Hu released its debut full-length record, The Gereg, in September, but it sounds polished and relatively plain compared to the live show. It's hard to duplicate the power the throat singing and ancient instrumentation in concert.
THE HU with Crown Lands. December 7, 8:30 p.m., $20. Brooklyn Bowl, 702-862-2695.
