Dritte Wahl (), also written ''3. Wahl'' (English translation: "Third Choice") is a German punk rock band from

Rostock Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, c ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Their music is classified as Deutschpunk and displays clear metal influences. Dritte Wahl’s lyrics are in German and are very direct, politically motivated, and left-leaning. As a German punk band, and particularly as a punk band formed in the former

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

under the communist state, their songs handle common themes. In the song ''Macht die Augen auf'' (English translation: "Open your eyes") they took on the subject of the 1992 anti-immigrant

Rostock-Lichtenhagen riots From August 22 to August 24, 1992 violent xenophobic riots took place in the Lichtenhagen district of Rostock, Germany; these were the worst mob attacks against migrants in postwar Germany. Stones and petrol bombs were thrown at an apartment block ...

. In their song ''Mainzer Straße'', Dritte Wahl describe the

Battle of Mainzer Straße The battle of Mainzer Straße took place in Friedrichshain, East Berlin between 12 and 14 November 1990. It was a major incident in the history of the city, following the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. The magistrate of East Berlin decided to e ...

that took place in East Berlin in 1990 when the city decided to clear the squatted houses. In their song ''Bad K.'', Dritte Wahl describe the contested circumstances of the death of

Wolfgang Grams Wolfgang Grams (March 6, 1953 – June 27, 1993) was a member of the Red Army Faction (RAF), a German far-left terrorist organisation. Life Wolfgang Grams was born in Wiesbaden, Germany. His parents, Werner and Ruth Grams, were expelled fr ...

, a member of the far-left

Red Army Faction The Red Army Faction (RAF, ; , ),See the section "Name" also known as the Baader–Meinhof Group or Baader–Meinhof Gang (, , active 1970–1998), was a West German far-left Marxist-Leninist urban guerrilla group founded in 1970. The ...

. Dritte Wahl have toured extensively in Germany. They toured Europe with

the Exploited The Exploited are a Scottish punk rock band from Edinburgh, formed in 1979 by Stevie Ross and Terry Buchan, with Buchan soon replaced by his brother Wattie Buchan. They signed to Secret Records in March 1981,Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

History

The Rostock-based punk band ''Dritte Wahl'' formed in 1986, after a 15 year old Gunnar Schröder was gifted with a guitar; he formed the band together with his brother (Jörn "Krel" Schroeder) and a friend from school (Marko "Busch’n" Busch). The band performed for the first time in May 1988 in their school cafeteria in Rostock-Evershagen, where they covered a number of songs from the

Toten Hosen Die Toten Hosen (literally "The Dead Trousers", figuratively "The Deadbeats") is a German punk rock band from Düsseldorf. History The current members of Die Toten Hosen are Campino (Andreas Frege), Kuddel (Andreas von Holst), Vom (Stephe ...

. In the band’s original line-up, Marko "Busch’n" Busch was the front-man and Toralf "Holm" Bornhöft played bass. However Bornhöft left the band in 1991. Dritte Wahl achieved national recognition and success in the German punk scene as a 3-piece band; the line-up was: Busch’n (vocals, bass), Gunnar Schroeder (guitar, vocals), and Jörn "Krel" Schroeder (drums, vocals). Gunnar Schröder cites

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

Accept Accept may refer to: * Acceptance, a person's assent to the reality of a situation etc. * Accept (band), a German heavy metal band ** ''Accept'' (Accept album), their debut album from 1979 * ''Accept'' (Chicken Shack album), 1970 * ACCEPT (or ...

, Freygang,

Ton Steine Scherben Ton Steine Scherben () was one of the first and most influential German language rock bands of the 1970s and early 1980s. Well known for the highly political and emotional lyrics of vocalist Rio Reiser, they became a musical mouthpiece of ...

Slime Slime may refer to: Biology * Slime mold, a broad term often referring to roughly six groups of Eukaryotes * Biofilm, an aggregate of microorganisms in which cells adhere to each other and/or to a surface * Slimy (fish), also known as the pony ...

Hass Hass may refer to: * Hass (Ottoman) * Hass (surname) * Hass (town), a town in Syria * Hass avocado, a type of avocado named after its cultivator, Rudolph Hass * Hass Petroleum, an investment company * Humanities, arts, and social sciences * Home ...

, and the

as early musical influences for the band. In 1998 the band formed their own record label named ''Rausch Records'', which was later renamed ''Dritte Wahl Records''. All of the band’s later releases have appeared on this label. That includes 10 official studio albums, as well as three Live albums, three compilation albums, and four live videos on dvd. On January 17, 2005, Busch’n died from stomach cancer at age 35. The remaining band members did not want to dissolve the band, and Busch’n also had not wanted that. Since April 2005, Stefan Ladwig joined the band on bass. On January 31, 2015, Dritte Wahl released their ninth studio album ''Geblitzdingst'', which was their first album that made it into the German Charts. Holger H. joined the band as guitarist and keyboard player. On September 1, Dritte Wahl released their tenth studio album titled ''10'', which reached place 12 in the German album charts. This album includes the song ''25 Cent'' about how retirees who cannot make ends meet collect used bottles for the recycling value. On September 18, 2020, Dritte Wahl released the album ''3D'' which reached place 6 on the German album charts.

Gallery

With Full Force Full Force (previously With Full Force) is a German heavy metal music, heavy metal and hardcore punk-oriented music festival held annually since 1994. The 2011 edition took place between 1 and 3 July at Roitzschjora airport in Löbnitz. Lineups ...

History

Gallery

Discography

Albums

Singles

Videos

External links

References