Räfven

Räfven is a Swedish group from Gothenburg, active since 2003. It begins as a street performance band in the summer of that year and performs both on stage and in the street. The group’s line-up includes Marcus Berg, David Fraenckel, Rasmus Blanck, Per Svenner, Johan Dahlkvist, Jonas Lundberg, Martin Nurmi, Loke Nyberg and Daniel Wejdin.

The band’s repertoire is built mainly around klezmer and folk music from Eastern Europe and Sweden, alongside its own material. Räfven does not present itself as belonging to one fixed genre, and instead plays music it sees as carrying joy, melancholy, bittersweetness and life. Its performances are described as highly physical and participatory, with an emphasis on getting audiences to dance, laugh, sing and shout together.

Räfven’s live reputation centres on energetic performances that translate from the street to festival stages. The group’s activity is associated with strong crowd response and a communal atmosphere.