Heilung are reanimators of ancient times in music and touch on the essence of the primordial spirit.
The essential trio nucleus founded in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2014, are Kai Uwe Faust (German tattoo artist), Christopher Juul (Danish music producer) and his partner Maria Franz (German musician).
Described as Viking Metal, Nordic Folk Metal and neo-Folk, their stated aim since forming with the two guys was to recreate ancient pagan music of Northern Europe. To make a connection to ancient roots and ancestry and interpret it for the ears of the glorious present.
Franz joined a year later as the definitive nucleus came together.
On stage they are augmented by other musicians and those identified as warriors. They are bringing a 17-person ensemble to New Zealand in November this year.
Familiar as World music in these times. I spoke to all three recently. Their project is vast, and we were able to get an introduction to it.
The ancient pagan world of pantheistic religions was dominated by the monotheistic tyranny of the past two millennia. Christianity, Judaism and Islam.
Christianity in particular dominated Europe and destroyed a lot of artifacts, instruments, and more importantly oral history, as they were not of the overarching single Creator.
To resurrect the ancient past requires the artists to become reanimators. Research the diaspora of the European continent and the tribal movements.
Some ancient texts remain, in runes inscribed on stone monoliths and monuments.
An illumination in the process is provided by Faust, when answering the question I pose. Do they cast spells?
They do, but they are good ones. Their name means healing in German.
Faust relates an ancient one related to digging up a deceased mother and bringing her back to life. From there came nine spells to protect her son from adversity.
He admits there are also nasty dark ones which they steer clear of.
Some of you will be reminded of Led Zeppelin. Their legendary fourth album (recently played this year by the Come Together Ensemble) is titled in ancient runes.
Jimmy Page was fascinated by occult esoterica, and his house Boleskin Manor, on the edge of Loch Ness (where some of the album was recorded) was the former home of the Beast Aleister Crowley.
They certainly do cast spells, if you take in YouTube videos of Norupo and Alfadhirhaiti.
You get some sense of their onstage power with the latter, which is done live, including warriors with spears.
The music is incantatory, with a declamatory aspect coming from the throat-singing of the guys.
They give an idea why the throat-singing of Mongolia and Tibet is there. The Huns came out of Mongolia and invaded and claimed tribal areas including the Germanic. They left behind cultural imprints as well as their DNA.
This is the history of the world stretching much further back than the Christian revolution.
Juul relates a story which came from the Roman Empire times. The Roman army when facing Nordic warriors described the war cries they made as terrible, savage, like marauding dogs.
Heilung bring this aspect to their stage.
There is a startling similarity to the vocals of many Dark Metal bands, and even to the Polynesian Metal of New Zealand’s own Shepherds Reign.
This is balanced by the vocals of Franz. She has spent time with Folk bands, and she has a voice which is like the tonal qualities of a Sandy Denny or an Enya.
The band understand that music is an essential language of communication and bonding spanning the whole of human history.
There have always been drums, animal hides stretched across a resonator. The band use bones as percussion instruments. They include historical artifacts and give them a new life.
Franz explains what the ravanahatha is. A coconut shell with a goatskin cover and strings. Comes from Rajasthan, India and is the prototype for the sitar. They call it the squeaky-squeaky.
Where does their drone sound come from? It is soothing, hypnotic and has a startling familiarity. As if it is part of the vibrations of your genome.
Heilung explain it comes from the natural sounds of the environment. There is always a rhythm there.
I get a clue. Franz tells me about a fancy stringed instrument they call a bolt (or boat?), shaped like a Viking vessel, which produces a part of the drone.
They have a striking and arresting appearance on stage. Headgear which can incorporate animal jawbones. Veils and masks. Shields and spears.
Approaching the primordial music of the cosmos.
Heilung are playing two shows in Auckland at the Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre, on the 16 and 18 November 2024.
Rev. Orange Peel
