[ad_1]
Everyone wants to be in MEUTE. Arguably the most popular and well-known techno marching band in the world, this 11-piece band fuses the work of famous DJs in Techno House and Deep House, adapting them live on stage for brass instruments and creating their own epic rave quartet.
The band first became famous a few years ago when they began playing in parks and streets, always staying connected to their audience and the community. Their new album EMPOR is out now and the band will be Luxembourg on June 8 in Francofolies.
In this interview, RTL Today’s Josh Oudendijk spoke with MEUTE’s founder and leader Thomas Burhorn via Zoom in March. Thomas shared his thoughts on the band’s evolution, the new album, and the fight against right-wing extremism and hatred.
Listen to the interview audio:
RTL Today: Thomas, what has changed and what has remained the same since MEUTE was founded?
Thomas Burhorn: Obviously, the core of what we do hasn’t changed, we still play techno with marching bands, we still go out on the streets and seek a really intimate encounter with the audience. Well, I think we’ve just evolved a little bit in terms of professionalism. I always say it’s like a framework: we set a framework, maybe it looks a little narrow, but we just play techno with these 11 instruments. The good thing is that when you have this framework, it’s easy to make decisions. That’s the first point.
The second thing is, you get better at the framework, and then you need to dig deeper. That way the framework becomes more three-dimensional and more interesting. And then you can start working on the details. I think when you listen to our first album and our current album, you can really hear the difference, we have a lot more love for details, and maybe we are a lot more aware of details. We have always had a love for details.
RTL Today: Tell me more about the effects you use. In programmed music you can add delays, reverbs to make things sound bigger… do you do that too, or do you use arrangements to emulate those sounds?
Thomas Burhorn: Well, yeah, a little bit of both. Sometimes our live instruments have some studio effects added to them, but everything you hear is still live instruments. We experiment a lot with instruments and the way we play them. I think what helps us is that we started our career doing covers, so we would listen to tracks that were made with synthesizers. Then we tried to figure out how to translate that to live instruments. We still do cover versions. That really helps us a lot.
RTL Today: It sounds a bit like a singer-songwriter who’s just starting to play their first concerts, they cover some of their favorite artists’ songs, and then at some point they slowly start to transition and find their own sound, find their own style.
Thomas Burhorn: I think every artist is like this to some extent. Whether it’s music or painting. I think Beethoven, Mozart, Bach or Miles Davis all started to follow their idols and started to do what they did. Then you can’t do anything that goes against your personality, it affects your personality.
RTL Today: So what does the new album EMPOR really mean? Is it a German word?
Thomas Burhorn: Yes, it is a very old German word. We always try to use some old German words that are not commonly used. The word EMPOR is an old and beautiful word used to describe something that rises from the ashes like a phoenix with grace and dignity.
RTL Today: How have audiences reacted to your new songs?
Thomas Burhorn: Yeah, it’s very, very good. So, I think this EMPOR album has a lot of depth. It’s not just party hits. But you still get the vibe of the four-man dance scene. When we play it live, people react very positively. Not only are they dancing, but they’re listening. So it’s music you really want to listen to, too.
RTL Today: I remember seeing some members of MEUTE playing other gigs at a festival in Hamburg a few years ago. So they are very busy and have to juggle a lot of projects, but does this also have a very interesting impact on the sound and diversity of the band?
Thomas Burhorn: We have one main band, but yes, most of them play in several different projects, which is very interesting for us because we are influenced by many other bands and styles. There is jazz, classical music, hard rock and electronic music. Everything influences our band and it is also the music we listen to when we travel through countries on the bus. Then we also have substitutes because people have different projects. There is a lot of rotation.
RTL Today: The band has always taken a very clear stance against far-right extremism and hatred, and recently and right now you’ve been participating in several protests in the country. You’ve taken to the streets to perform music, using music as a form of protest against hatred. This is sometimes a difficult problem for artists, as they seem to think it’s best for them to remain apolitical. But what does MEUTE think about this? How do you see the interconnection between politics and art?
Thomas Burhorn: Yes, everyone is well aware of that. About 10-15 years ago, people might have thought it wasn’t that necessary because it wasn’t a big movement on the right, a hate movement, whatever you want to describe it. But now we realize it’s so important for artists to have their voices heard. We have the potential to change the world in a positive way, and we have to realize and make people aware that we can vote and make a change, choose love, not hate.
RTL Today: Are you still an avid reveler?
Thomas Burhorn: I am a person who values balance, so I need both partying and rest.
MEUTE will host the Francofolies competition on June 8 in Esch-sur-Alzette. Tickets are here.
[ad_2]
Source link
