Wumpscut (stylised as :wumpscut: or simply :w:) is a gothic-influenced electro-industrial music project from Germany. It was founded in May 1991 by Bavarian disc jockey Rudolf "Rudy" Ratzinger (born 1966). Through 2016, Rudy Ratzinger released seventeen studio albums plus a number of compilations: demos, compilation tracks, and remixes from deleted singles and EPs.

Rudy Ratzinger is the sole member of Wumpscut, occasionally employing the help of guest artists (such as Aleta Welling, P·A·L, Selene etc.), although such collaborations were minimal in scope. Ratzinger cites the influence of such bands as Leæther Strip as his reason for making the transfer from DJing to recording music: "I was a DJ for several years and was tired of offering the audience only alien stuff. The first Leæther Strip works were responsible for trying something on my own."

First works performed by Wumpscut dates back to the early 1990s when Rudy Ratzinger started to play music in Bavarian club houses and in Southern Germany. In a 1997 interview, Rudy Ratzinger reveals that "Pornography" and "War Combattery" were his first two songs in EBM, those two four-minute songs are to be found on Defcon, the first demo issued by Wumpscut in late 1991. Yet, only "Pornography" was picked for reappearance on Blutkind (although a remix of War Combattery surfaced on the Mesner Tracks re-release EP which was released before). According to Rudy, "War Combattery" was a great hit in club houses: "[It] was a very big success in the clubs in Southern Germany."

The first full-length release from Wumpscut was 1993's Music for a Slaughtering Tribe. The release contained the song "Soylent Green", which is named after the 1973 movie and also contains audio samples from the German dubbed version. The song first attracted attention to Wumpscut and became a frequently played song at events and clubs in the goth and industrial subcultures, in Germany, UK and the United States.

1994 saw the release of two EPs, Dried Blood and Gomorra, the latter named in reference to Operation Gomorrah, the code name used by the British for the bombing of the city of Hamburg in World War II. The following year saw Wumpscut's second full-length release, Bunkertor 7.

The 1997 album, Embryodead made an appearance at #20 on the CMJ RPM chart in the U.S.

In 1999, Wumpscut released Boeses Junges Fleisch ("Evil Young Flesh"), an album conceptually based on the life and events of German serial killer Fritz Haarmann and themes of unrequited love, hate, lust, and violence more generally. The album reached #25 on the CMJ RPM chart (US) and #17 on the German Alternative Charts (DAC).

The 2000 EP release of Blutkind ("Blood child") reached #5 on the DAC Top 50 Albums of 2000 (Germany) and #17 on the CMJ RPM Charts in the US.