It all started off as a “crazy experiment,” says Thomas Burhorn, trumpeter and bandleader. Would it be possible, Burhorn wondered, to play electronic music with only wind and percussion, “while still sounding electronic?” After writing the first sheet music in 2015, sourcing secondhand uniforms from eBay and assembling a group of 11 professional musicians who would have the chops to pull it off, Burhorn organized a flash mob concert on the streets of Hamburg.

Turns out his experiment wasn’t so crazy after all. The crowd loved the band’s infectious energy and incessant beats, and a video of the performance went viral. Since then, MEUTE, which means dog pack or wild gathering in German, has become what Hamburg-based radio producer Stefan Gerdes describes as “one of Germany’s biggest musical exports.” The band, which is working on its third album, has played at festivals and clubs throughout Europe (they’re extremely popular on the European festival circuit) as well as Africa and Asia.

Of course, MEUTE owes much of its success to the skill of all 11 members behind the instruments — tuba, saxophone, xylophone, lyre — and sound guy, Torsten Langsdorf, who Burhorn describes as “incredible.” Sounds like an unlikely combination, but it works. A xylophone carries the synth leads, tuba supplies a pulsing bass, and a massive bass drum simulates an 808. The horn players cleverly use hand mutes to emulate the sound of a high pass filter, and there’s moments where the entire band slurs into a break, as if a DJ had added an echo effect.

At the end of each show it does feel like they’ve “run a marathon,” says Burhorn. “But in a totally positive way. We feed off the crowd’s energy.”

The most interesting element of their performances is that people instinctively reacted to it like electronic dance music. People moved as if they were in a nightclub, rather than a parade. Even without any technology, everyone could tell it was techno.

Watch the exclusive music video premiere for the 11-person band’s cover of Oscar House’s ‘Panda.’