German Marching Techno Band Meute's International Fame Comes And Goes With Their Red Jackets
Over the past eight years, Thomas Berkhorn has become a world-famous musician, but having had enough of the fame, he takes off his red jacket and returns to normal life.
Berkhorn is the co-founder and trumpeter of the Hamburg techno band Meute, who will be performing at Womad in New Plymouth March 17-19.
Over the past eight years, 11-piece Red Ribbon Jacket has become an international phenomenon, whose live performances elevate audiences and never let up.
“I think we're pretty famous, but without that red jacket, no one would know us. It's wonderful," Berkhorn said via video from Hamburg.
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Here's what you can expect. The group arranges techno, house and deep house tracks from popular DJs and complements them with electronic beats created using orchestral instruments such as trumpets, saxophones, drums and sousaphone.
The music they create is similar enough to the orchestral and techno genres to be a completely new yet instantly recognizable sound.
Videos of their concerts and street performances posted on YouTube garner millions of views, and the band often seem to be enjoying themselves as much as anyone.
"We are cheerful people. But it's also about having fun and loving what we do. It is an honor for us to do what we love," Berkhorn said.
Not everything is fun. The group's massive popularity recently led to them being featured in the 1930s Netflix drama Babylon Berlin as the nightclub house band.
Promotional material for the Season 4 episode shows the band in their prime, but the footage comes hours after a long wait.
"Wait, wait, wait, then someone says 'act,' and you're in," Berhorn said.
Despite a busy touring schedule that often includes dozens of countries a year, the members of Meute will be visiting New Zealand for the first time.
"We are very interested in New Zealand because we have only heard that it is such a beautiful country."
