Biography
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Years Active
1984 – 1999 (15 years)
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Founded In
Upplands Väsby, Upplands Väsby municipality, Stockholms län, Sweden
IFA Wartburg was a Swedish band formed in 1984 in Upplands Väsby by Magnus Michaeli and Nils Lundwall, who performed under the aliases Rolf Kempinski and Heinz Klinger. The band disbanded in 1999.
The band's name was inspired by the East German automobile brand Wartburg, manufactured by IFA. Their lyrics were written in German and often reflected a playful use of the vocabulary associated with the German Democratic Republic (GDR). The songs were typically satirical, with titles such as "Frau Gorbatschowa tanzt Bossanova" ("Mrs. Gorbachev dances bossa nova"), "Es ist nicht so schlimm auf der Insel Krim" ("It's not so bad on the island of Crimea"), "Agrarwissenschaft im Dienste des Sozialismus" ("Agriscience in the Service of Socialism"), "Freie Deutsche Jugend (FDJ)" ("Free German Youth"), "Der Alte Böse Kapitalismus" ("The Old Evil Capitalism"), and "Zwei Tage in Berlin" ("Two Days in Berlin").
Musically, IFA Wartburg's style was eclectic, drawing from influences such as bossa nova ("Frau Gorbatschowa tanzt Bossanova"), pop and ska ("Freie Deutsche Jugend"), as well as jazz and swing ("Spassjazz"). The band humorously described their genre as "Mauer Power" (a reference to the Berlin Wall) and "Russian Roll," although these terms were likely used in jest.
Günther Raubschaentze, who claims affiliation with the band, manages a YouTube channel and a website dedicated to IFA Wartburg. As of December 2024, the YouTube channel had over 3.1 million views and more than 9,600 subscribers. The band also had a Spotify account, which, as of July 2024, had over 50,000 monthly listeners. However, in September 2024, their music was removed from online streaming platforms after an individual named Losi Gaydyn claimed copyright over songs from the album *Im Dienste des Sozialismus*. The songs were still available through the band's YouTube channel. In January 2025, the album was briefly restored to streaming platforms, only to be removed again, and then reappeared several days later. As of now, the songs are available on most streaming platforms.
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