German punk band's singer says election night rendition of their hit Tage Wie Diese was 'still the best thing the CDU have done'

Footage of Angela Merkel and her party celebrating Sunday night's election triumph by singing along to a hit by a veteran German punk band has been described as a "car crash" by the songwriter.

"It wasn't pretty, but you couldn't stop watching it anyway," said Campino, the singer of seasoned German pop-punk band Die Toten Hosen (the Dead Trousers).

Writing on the band's Facebook page, he said: "One thing is clear, this terrible performance of our song is still the best thing we've seen the CDU do in a long time."

The band, which was formed in 1982 in Düsseldorf's alternative scene and once recorded a song with the train robber Ronnie Biggs, had previously criticised the use of their 2012 hit Tage Wie Diese (Days Like These) by both the CDU and the Social Democrats during the election campaign.

"The risk that people could assume there to be a link between the band and the messages conveyed at these events makes us angry. It would have been a sign of decency to ask us in advance if we had a problem with the use of our music in such events, and to respect if we had declined the request."

It's arguable whether the episode is more embarrassing for Merkel's party or for Die Toten Hosen. One commentator on the website of Die Taz newspaper suggested it wasn't easy to tell Merkel's team apart from the real band, most of whom are now in their fifties.

Die Toten Hosen's punk rock credentials didn't stretch as far as suing the CDU for their performance.