I find it hard to understand what the hell I’ve just listened. Looking for information about Heilung (German for healing) I can say that I’ve never met a band like this in the past. Their style can be characterized as experimental folk and it describes their music perfectly.
They were founded in 2014 by German tattoo artist Kai Uwe Faust, Maria Franz also from Germany and Cristopher Juul from Denmark. The last two also play together in Euzen and Songleikr and have participated in the album “Mareridt” by Myrkur. Their music is based on texts from artifacts of the Iron Age originated by the people in Northern Europe and the Viking Age. Their debut album “Ofnir” was self-released in 2015, re-released in 2018 by Season Of Mist and in the meantime the put out the live album “Lifa” in 2017 by the same label.
Their music is very hard to be described and if someone could do it, it would lose its point. It’s a huge variety of sounds and voices based on hundreds of years ago. As instruments they use objects like drums from animal skins, bones, horns, ceremonial bells and numerous other things that could be used by the people of the Iron Age. The vocals change depending on the person who sings. Ethereal from Franz, throat singing from Faust and chirping whispers from Juul. They also use several languages in their lyrics.
One can easily understand that this is not a usual band. Not even the usual folk band. In their live appearances they choose Celtic and Viking clothing and one of them (the album “Lifa”) gave them more than two million views on YouTube, a contract with Season Of Mist and one place in the best ten performances of 2017 from England’s Metal Hammer.
Almost seventy-five minutes of peculiar music that has a purpose of putting the listener on a journey to an unusual world. It’s not easy-listening, that’s for sure. As for me, there were moments that captivated me and other ones that made me begging to end as soon as possible. I don’t think that I will listen to it again, but I would really want to see them perform on stage.
