The modern pagan collective known as Heilung brought their visually and audibly stunning ritual to the Usher Hall in Edinburgh recently. Supported by the ethereal Eivør, Heilung put on an enrapturing performance that is unlike anything out there currently, taking the audience on a journey of raw, animalistic human nature and pagan spirituality.
The evening started out with a support performance from Faroese solo artist Eivør. Eivør has become a familiar face among Heilung tours, having supported them many times in the past, including during their last Scotland performance at the Barrowlands in Glasgow, a performance I myself, was fortunate enough to attend. Best known for her work on the soundtrack for the TV Show The Last Kingdom, Eivør played a mix of work from her own albums and tracks from the series.
The first song of the night was Jarðartrá, which in English means Dust To Dust. Bathed in atmospheric blue lights, Eivør’s haunting and siren like vocals echoed throughout the Usher Hall, creating a sense of magic that was palpable. Having never attended a performance at the Usher Hall before, I was very impressed with the acoustics, everything sounded clear and mixed immaculately. The second track upped the Ante and energy, with Eivør taking up an electric guitar and adding some brilliantly distorted riffs to the music. In a change of both tone and era, the guitar was swapped for a traditional style hand drum that created a dark and brooding atmosphere that accompanied the song Salt, from her 2015 album Slør.
The beauty of this performance continued, with another track from Slør, followed by a very haunting piece from the score of The Last Kingdom called Hymn 49. The talent of Eivør was on full display for the next couple of tracks, showing off some really impressive vocal techniques and breathe control, making for an almost anxiety inducing experience. Before the finale of the performance, Eivør commented “You definitely need to drink water after that one”.
For the climax of the support, the lights switched from a cold but gentle blue and white, to a much bolder, more aggressive Red, and the final song, Upp Úr Øskuni or Rise From The Ashes in English. A perfect finale to the show, the booming drums and powerful vocals accompanying them made this one of the most memorable performances from the support, and I hope to be able to one day catch Eivør on a headline tour in future.
Up next were the band everyone in the audience had been waiting for, the incredible Heilung. I saw their last Scotland headline performance a couple of years ago at the Barrowlands, a performance I still think about frequently when listening to their music. However, as good as that performance was, Heilung need to be experienced in a large venue that can allow for the performance. However, I’d hesitate to call it a performance, as it is far more like a ritualistic ceremony, something that transcend traditional concepts of live music. The ritual began with some I don’t think any other musical project has ever done, which was have a shaman come out and bless the entire stage, instruments and audience with a beautiful incense. I was in the photo pit right in front of the stage while this happened, and the aromas were truly beautiful and really helped to Immerse me in the ritual I was about to witness. Soon, all members of the band came out on stage, with vocalist Maria Franz being instantly recognisable in her flowing white gown and deer antler head dress. Founding member and fellow vocalist Kai Uwe-Faust then launched into a prayer to a divine force, something that has existed before us humans and will continue to exist after.
Once this beautiful ceremony was completed, a spine-chilling horn was blown, after which, Uwe Faust let out a cry and the performance truly began, starting the set list off with perhaps the most recognisable Heilung track, In Maidjan. The booming, pounding drums and stunning vocals, ranging from melodic and clean to guttural and harsh, all these harmonised exquisitely. A real highlight of this performance in particular is Maria Franz’s banshee like vocals, which are something that needs to be experienced live.
The set list continues strong with fan favourite track Norupo, which featured a beautiful stage performance from Maria Franz and her fellow female vocalists. This gentler song was followed by the far more aggressive and war like Alfadhirhaiti which saw the stage filled with spear and shield clad warriors in war paint stand on stage and chant to the chorus. The tone again shifted with another stunningly lit stage performance during the song Asja. While the music is the primary focus of the performance, the accompanying light show is truly a sight to see, featuring flowing pagan symbols projected on every surface and deep contrasting spotlights that draw the eye organically throughout the show.
Svanrand was next, a very story driven song, with the sounds of arrows flowing through the air and striking wooden shields and huts, conjuring up the vision of a clan fighting a war. This war like energy continued into a couple tracks from their 2022 album Drif with Urbani and Tenet. One of the most captivating songs came in the form of Anoana, an almost lullaby like song that never fails to illicit strong emotions when I hear it, and tonight was no different. Maria was once again leading on the vocals and her performance was nothing short of perfection, the lighting as well was truly something wonderful. A definite surprise came when they performed the song Seidh, produced for the videogame Hellblade 2: Senua’s Saga, which is how I first discovered Heilung, when their song In Maidjan was used for a marketing campaign. This was a song I had never heard in its entirety before, but it is certainly one I will be listening to more.
For the climax of the “ritual”, the lights dimmed to pitch black, and silence fell among the audience. The silence was shattered by a feral and animalistic scream and flashing lights as Hamrer Hippyer began. I adore this song in particular song, as it channels nothing but pure energy, there is very little variety lyrically, and the drumbeats are simple, yet the energy of the band dancing and the repetitive chants brought the biggest smile to my face. The stage was full of all members of the band dancing around and some even came up to the barrier and hyped up the crowd, and they were certainly hyped. From my aerial view in the seating above, the standing audience looked like an ocean, flowing like water. This animalistic energy was maintained for almost 15 minutes, which substantially raised the temperature of the room. After it was over and the crowd had chilled out so to speak, the closing ceremony began. Something I noticed was the respect of the audience during these ceremonies. There was total silence as the band members were blessed by the same shaman from the opening ceremony.
Heilung are a force of nature, their performance is truly unique, and I strongly encourage anyone even remotely curious to go and attend a Heilung performance. There is nothing quite like them. I know that after this tour, the band will go on a hiatus, but they are only just getting started, once they return, I know that their next tour will not only be bigger, but also bolder.
Photos and Review By John Morton.
