—Can you tell us which songs from the upcoming album will be performed on the “Black Thunder” tour, why you’re excited to play them and how they represent a new chapter for THE HU?
THE HU: For the “Black Thunder” tour, we’re excited to be performing songs from our new album including “Mother Nature,” “Tatar Warrior” and “ShihiHutu.” We have been working hard on our second album and hope to have it ready soon. It will be focused on showing the unique qualities of the Hunnu Rock genre and consists of many new songs that reinforce the different aspects of it. So far we’ve been getting positive response from our fans and we can’t wait to perform all of our new songs for them.
–What inspired you to call the tour “Black Thunder”?
THE HU: We originated in Mongolia and through our music we try to make our fans feel the freedom and energy of the spirit of our vast land and high mountains. Likewise, the “Black Thunder” name is inspired by the unique scenery that can only be seen in Mongolia in which the thunder rumbles right before the rain in the high mountains, the number of clouds in the sky and the force of the lightning are heard, and seen many, many miles away We tried to communicate the energy and feeling you would get experiencing that and hence we named the tour “Black Thunder.”
—A Coachella performance is a prestigious booking since the festival has always stood for musical integrity. Can you discuss what it feels like to be performing at Coachella for the first time in your career? Are there any other artists you’re excited to see performing on the day you play?
THE HU: It is such an honor to be part of Coachella. We’re more than thrilled to be included and it has always been our dream to be performing on that stage representing Mongolia for the first time. We feel that it’s a great opportunity to meet with many of our loyal fans and artists that we love. There are so many talented great artists playing on the day we perform and for the rest of the festival, and if we get a chance, we would love to see all of them.
–You’ve performed in many cities in North America. Can you tell us what it’s like to play for audiences here and how they might be different from ones in Europe?
THE HU: We’ve toured many cities and several continents and met with so many awesome people. Every place has its own characteristics that can be felt through their greetings, hand gestures and chants before, during and after the concerts. In that regard, we would say the biggest differences that we can recall would be the amount of people who would sing along and who’ve memorized the lyrics. Each continent has different accents on singing in Mongolian and we love all of our audiences and their uniqueness.
–What is your favorite part about touring North America? Do you guys ever have the time to explore cities on days off (restaurants, museums, etc.) and if so, what has that been like?
THE HU: Our favorite thing about touring in North America is visiting different places and meeting people. Not only do the restaurants and establishments differ, but each one of them has a unique style. On our days off, we’ve had a chance to taste the most amazing barbecue in Texas, Asian fusion mixed with Mexican spices and sushiritto, etc and explore around everywhere we go. Like their cuisine, Americans are always willing to go the extra mile to make people feel welcome and accepted–we’ve had many people guide us through their cities and towns.