Die Ärzte

Formed in West Berlin in 1982 by guitarist Farin Urlaub (Jan Vetter) and drummer Bela B. (Dirk Felsenheimer), with original bassist Hans Runge, Die Ärzte turned deliberately silly, satirical punk into some of the best-selling German-language rock of the past four decades. After splitting in 1988, the trio reunited in 1993 with new bassist Rodrigo González, scoring a breakthrough with the anti-racist single Schrei nach Liebe. Their catalogue swings between gleeful nonsense, social commentary, and pop melody, all three writing and singing. Albums like Die Bestie in Menschengestalt and 13 made them a self-produced institution, still touring into the 2020s.