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WATCH: Mongolian band's cover of Beatles hit brings chills

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David Dizon, ABS-CBN News

<p>ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia - Here&#x27;s something you don&#x27;t hear everyday.</p><p>During a trip to Ulaanbaatar, a group of journalists attending the ASEF Editors’ Roundtable Meeting stumbled upon this group - an eight-member Mongolian band that plays traditional Mongolian music, as well as covers of popular hit songs.</p><p>Jonon uses traditional Mongolian instruments such as the morrin huur (horse-head fiddle), yoochin (dulcimer), flute, jaw harp and combines them with electric bass and percussion for a raw and powerful sound.</p><p>During Saturday&#x27;s gig at Torgo studio, they also played their version of &quot;Come Together&quot;-- combining traditional Mongolian throat singing or &quot;khoomei&quot; with one of the Beatles&#x27; most famous songs.</p><p>It&#x27;s the intro and the extro, like a low tone growl and rap, that sets it apart.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><div style="padding-top:66.375%"><div id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_1_Container"> <ivs-player id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_1" data-ivs-spid="3001339" data-ivs-key="e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603" data-ivs-vid="1468709" data-ivs-floating="1"></ivs-player> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/iframe-parent.js"></script> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/loader.js"></script> </div></div></figure><p>Khoomei or throat harmony is a style of singing in which a single performer produces a diversified harmony of multiple voice parts, including a continued bass element produced in the throat. (One colleague calls it, with tongue-in-cheek: &quot;Cookie Monster singing.&quot;)</p><p>In a Facebook interview, Jonon lead singer Monkhsaihan Monjigo said throat singing is famous in Mongolia but very hard to master. The intro and extro to his version of &quot;Come Together,&quot; he said, is similar to a Buddhist chant.</p><p>Here&#x27;s another video of Jonon:</p><figure class="op-interactive"><div style="padding-top:66.375%"><div id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_2_Container"> <ivs-player id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_2" data-ivs-spid="3001339" data-ivs-key="e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603" data-ivs-vid="1468711" data-ivs-floating="1"></ivs-player> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/iframe-parent.js"></script> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/loader.js"></script> </div></div></figure><p>Jonon derives its name, he said, from &quot;a horse legend about the birth of the prince of piano music.&quot;</p><p>The Beatles, Altan Urag, Sigur Ros and other great musicians are just some of their influences.</p><p>All the members of the band are graduates of arts and culture university. &quot;All members just work at Jonon. Our CD is coming soon,&quot; Monkhsaihan said.</p><p>I tracked down some of their music on YouTube and came up with covers of songs such as &quot;Across the Universe&quot; also by The Beatles.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe frameBorder="0" height="383" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/876bkv7DK1E" width="510"></iframe></figure><p>They also do a joyful version of &quot;All I Want For Christmas Is You&quot; with a video shot on a snow-covered rooftop.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe frameBorder="0" height="383" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/jQ3O7yKQbrw" width="510"></iframe></figure><p>Another version of the song has singer Ganbolor on the vocals and the band playing classroom instruments ala Jimmy Fallon and The Roots.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe frameBorder="0" height="383" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/8RSZQqSCpDo" width="510"></iframe></figure><p>But it&#x27;s their original stuff that sets them apart from other bands, such as this song &quot;Baruun Mongol&quot; or &quot;Western Mongolia.&quot;</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe frameBorder="0" height="383" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Y4h5jtkfcbg" width="510"></iframe></figure><p>In the interview, Monkhsaihan said the band has big dreams for the future.</p><p>&quot;We have very BIG dream. Grammy music award [for] JONON,&quot; he said.</p><iframe allowtransparency="true" frameBorder="0" height="342" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fjonon.mn%2Fphotos%2Fa.682872565107669.1073741826.271786026216327%2F1001318506596405%2F%3Ftype%3D3&amp;width=500" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="500"></iframe>

Here's something you don't hear everyday - a Mongolian band that combines throat singing with one of the Beatles' most famous songs.

WATCH: Mongolian band's cover of Beatles hit brings chills

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WATCH: Mongolian band's cover of Beatles hit brings chills

David Dizon,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jul 15, 2016 01:30 PM PHT

Read More:

ulaanbaatar

mongolia

Beatles

jonon

come together

mariah carey

george michael

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