What more could you ask for on an Easter Saturday in Edinburgh than a visit from everyone’s favourite folk band in the form of Heilung, who this time around have the talented Eivør in tow to spice things up
We arrived bang on opening time and there was a line that snaked along Lothian Road and back up to the venue. The crowd was very eclectic, not something that I expected, and it shows that appeal of both artists stretches across the music spectrum
This was proven when Eivor took the stage in a very low key manner to a virtually full venue, something that you don’t often see these days
Eivor pullsa lot of inspiration from her beautiful country of the Faroe islands and opened with the haunting ‘Jarõartrá’ that got the audience going and set the tone for the forty five minute set . ‘Salt’ was one of the stand out tracks of a theatrical set that also included the song ‘Hymn’ from the TV series The Last Kingdom
The sound of Eivor’s southing and calming voice inbetween songs was amazing and a welcome change from the screaming and loud introductions of a rock or metal gig and if I could bottle and sell on the merch stand I would, it would be a perfect stress relief tool. Not even dropping her microphone during the last song ‘Upp Úr Oskuni’ could affect the smooth flow of the show.
I didn’t think that Eivor’s mix of Folk, Jazz, Experimental rock and electronic avant-pop would be my thing but I really enjoyes the set and is a live example of not judging a book by its cover.
In between the sets we get he sounds of the forest through the PA as the stage is set up for Heilung. Ghost are not the only band who refer to their shows as ‘Rituals’ and Heilung’s Edinburgh one has the traditional start consisting of the Opening Ceremony where the band dust each other with incense to perform a spiritual cleansing of the stage, the smell of frankincense permeating the stage and then drifting off into the auditorium
As things settle down the band drop into ‘In Maidjan’ with powerful drums pounding like a heartbeat and livening up the audience who seemed trance like after the opening ritual
The band are visually stunning and Maria Franz’s vocals balance off Kai Faust’s guttural singing to a point where they blend in perfectly and oddly as it seems, melt into one, which I think is kind of the point of the whole performance.
The whole visual vibe of spotlights and beat of the tribal drums complete with the stunning lightshow is a sight to behold and means that it is a performance that must be seen at least once in your lifetime. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea but as a spectacle, it’s an immersive experience of the highest order
Review & Photography by Gavin Lowrey
