9/20/2023 0 Comments Howling rock runix hallThe introduction is eerie as the singers vocalise the sound of two wolves howling. more a fully immersive piece of performance art, mixing songs with dance and ritual.Įarly in the set we get the excellent Alfadhirhaiti, one of my favourite pieces. The musicians and dances take their places and with cries and drumbeats, the main performance starts. It’s mesmerising and the crowd are gripped in silence as they watch. With incantations, the ritual immediately takes the audience away from the ‘concert’ mentality/situation, deep into the forest as part of this pagan event. The ensemble join him on stage forming a circle, and he continues the ritual, anointing them each in turn with the smoke. A shaman enters the stage, and carries out a ritual, wafting smoke across the performance area and towards the audience. The stage is impressive, with a large runic rug and trees creating a feel of a pagan ritual site. Many dressed as worriers, topless with war paint, shields and spears. All are dressed in tribal attire with horns, antlers, furs and painted faces. The three core members are joined by touring musicians and a group of actors & dancers (the Heilung Warriors). As a result their CV includes work on TV series such as ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘Vikings’ as well as cinema epic ‘The Northman’. Their music has become popular with heavy metal fans as well which has helped build their chart success. Although modern equipment is used to amplify the sound, they favour ancient instruments such as bells, bones, rattles and Nordic throat singing. The lyrics are sung in German, Gothic, Latin and Old Norse. Often over-simplified as being about Viking music, Heilung actually cover a broad range of ancient cultures and sounds, focusing on iron and bronze age, as well as viking and other northern cultures. Faust explains that the name Heilung means "healing" in German, and that the the listener “is supposed to be left at ease and in a relaxed state after a magical musical journey that is at times turbulent". So what are Heilung ? Well, they were formed in 2014 by Kai Faust (German) and Christopher Juul (Danish) and shortly afterwards were joined by Maria Franz (Norwegian). It’s very different to the usual performances in the Hall ! I thought I must remember to check in afterwards to see what they thought. Talking to some of the front of house / security staff, they are really excited to see what this is like…. Lili sets the scene beautifully for what’s to come later.Ī longer break in proceedings as the set is prepared for the main act. It doesn’t fit well in any specific genre, working beyond and round usual boundaries to create something mystical and enjoyable. The sound is full and compliments her vocals and chants. This allows the creation of a far deeper sound. Nothing is pre-recorded, it’s looped and created live. Playing drums and guitar Lili uses a Looper effect pedal to record and repeat a drum line, allowing her to then add additional drum parts on top, or play guitar/synth. Performing alone, she strikes an imposing figure on stage in long flowing black with black and red face paint. This was a trip well worth making ! The incredible acoustics of the venue should hopefully add to the experience.įirst up on stage was Rome-based singer/musician Lili Refrain. I have to admit to a certain bias here, having their albums Lifa (2018) and Ofnir (2018). Home to the world famous Hallé orchestra and choir, tonight’s performance is a little different. So tonight we headed out on a 220 mile round trip journey to Manchester, and the impressive Bridgewater Hall to see Heilung.
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