If Germany has taught the British anything in recent years, it’s that you needn’t have a sirloin steak to host a successful dinner party. World famous in the metal scene for their often controversial flamboyancy, enigmatic lyrics and mind blowing live performances, Germany’s finest Rammstein return with their 6th studio album ‘Liebe ist für alle da’ (‘Love Is There For Everyone’) and it is, somewhat literally, a belter.
It’s been 4 years since the Industrial Metaller’s graced us with their presence and what a long 4 years it was. Musically, there’s nothing new here. If you know anything about them then you know what to expect- booming and swooning vocals, techno beat laden orchestral triumph and power chords aplenty. For countless other bands, avoiding stepping into the unknown would spell an instant fiery demise, but Rammstein appear to have progressed naturally without losing their distinctive, irreplaceable sound.
That can certainly be said about first track ‘Rammlied’ (‘Ramm-Song’.) Taking obvious pickings from the best bits from previous album openers ‘Reise Reise’, ‘Mein Hertz Brent’ and ‘Sehnsuct,’ it is a brotherly nod to the eponymous lost classic ‘Rammstein’ (Herzeleid, 1995)- which too will have crowds worldwide chanting their name in war-like song. Classy. ‘Ich Tut Dir Weh’ (‘I Hurt You’) follows closely in line, the immense power behind Christoph Sneider’s onslaught of percussion gets the head nodding and the pulse racing.
Then it really hits you. ‘Waidmann’s Heil’ (‘Hunter's Hail’) is an album highlight and, although straying little from the typical structure of a Rammstein piece, it is no less impressive. It begins with what can be best described as a horn. Envisage a hunt- hounds, huntsmen and whips alike. The hunter sounds the horn and the hunt is underway! Only it’s not. The pack is charged by the colossal apocalyptic machine that is Richard Kruspe (Lead Guitar) and Paul Landers (Rhythm Guitar.) The band’s repertoire is full to the brim with such riff-tastic delights and this is no exception. The power and ferocity that is a Rammstein power chord has to be heard to be believed and, most importantly, must also be heard very, very loudly.
Frontman Till Lindemann’s vocals are impeccable as always. His bass tone boom appears to handle anything flung wildly in his direction and, again despite sticking to the norm, there’s still so much experimentation song from song. ‘Haifisch’ (‘Shark’) is a majestic stampede of melody, a rarity among Rammstein’s material and is the first point of the album where Keyboardist and resident freak Christian ‘Flake’ Lorenz unleashes his spine chilling effects. The track ceases with a haunting acoustic only to lead into the monotonous bass heavy riff of ‘B*********.’ Translated as ‘Bückstabü’ which, according to Landers is a word they fabricated to mean “anything you want”, Till growls at you with unparallel malice and when the drums sound, you really ought to be sat down. Or at least armed to the teeth.
Who would have thought the band who, in the past, have written so colourfully about sadomasochism, incest and necrophilia could perpetrate a heartrenchingly beautiful love ballad like ‘Fruling in Paris’ (‘Springtime in Paris.’) It is a serenade like none other they’ve done before and Till sends shivers as he crones in French ‘non je ne regrète rien’ (no, I regret nothing.) Brilliant.No, Lindemann’s Posse are no strangers to controversy across the globe. 2004’s single ‘Mein Teil’ (‘My Part’) tells the story of Europe’s most notorious cannibal Armin Meiwes who met a man on the internet and, to cut a long story short- no pun intended- ate his genitals. The video for 2005’s first single ‘Mann Gegen Mann’ (‘Man Against Man’) sees the band and a horde of fully naked men writhing around in body oil. And, given their propensity to include all things taboo in their art, ‘Liebe ist für alle da’s first single ‘P***y’ follows much the same pattern. You may think with a name and subject like that it’d never get radio play, but it happens to be their first Number 1 in Germany. The beauty of Rammstein’s music has always been that you don’t need to understand the language to relate to the emotion it creates and, frankly, the lyrics in this particular number speak for themselves, especially as the chorus is sung entirely in English- ‘Take me now, oh don’t you see… I can’t get laid in Germany.’ And not forgetting the snigger of ‘Steck Bratwurst in dein Sauerkraut.’ Genius. It may be challenging the subject of Europe’s sex trade but to me it sounds like a creepy orgy buffet. Personally, I believe it’s their finest tune to date. The albums final 2 tracks ‘Mehr’ (‘More’) and ‘Roter Sand’ (‘Red Sand’) work excellently together, the former a ferocious mix of tempo change, varying harmonies and just sheer aggression. It closes with another example of Till Lindemann’s vocal ability, a swooning poem that leads perfectly into orchestra lead closer ‘Roter Sand’, which wouldn’t be out of place in an war movie soundtrack.
It only takes one listen to hit home the quality of the album as a whole. At times it is inventive, unpredictable and shocking and at its best it is simply butt-puckeringly powerful. Unlike, for example, previous effort ‘Rosenrot’ (2005)- which seemed a somewhat disjointed affair-, ‘Liebe ist für alle da’ could quite possibly be Rammstein’s greatest achievement. Not necessarily because it has the best and most memorable tracks but because it works and simply proves that, even after 15 years in the business, they still do it better than anyone. Saying that, it’s not the best place to begin if you’re a Rammstein virgin, it’s more the stripper on the bachelor party cake, so to speak.
Intrigued? Dude, check out:
'Asche Zu Asche' ('Herzeleid', 1995)
'Sehnsucht' (‘Sehnsucht’, 1997)
'Rein Raus' ('Mutter', 2001)
'Mein Teil' ('Reise Reise', 2004)
'Waidmanns Heil' ('Liebe ist für alle da', 2009)
It’s been 4 years since the Industrial Metaller’s graced us with their presence and what a long 4 years it was. Musically, there’s nothing new here. If you know anything about them then you know what to expect- booming and swooning vocals, techno beat laden orchestral triumph and power chords aplenty. For countless other bands, avoiding stepping into the unknown would spell an instant fiery demise, but Rammstein appear to have progressed naturally without losing their distinctive, irreplaceable sound.
That can certainly be said about first track ‘Rammlied’ (‘Ramm-Song’.) Taking obvious pickings from the best bits from previous album openers ‘Reise Reise’, ‘Mein Hertz Brent’ and ‘Sehnsuct,’ it is a brotherly nod to the eponymous lost classic ‘Rammstein’ (Herzeleid, 1995)- which too will have crowds worldwide chanting their name in war-like song. Classy. ‘Ich Tut Dir Weh’ (‘I Hurt You’) follows closely in line, the immense power behind Christoph Sneider’s onslaught of percussion gets the head nodding and the pulse racing.
Then it really hits you. ‘Waidmann’s Heil’ (‘Hunter's Hail’) is an album highlight and, although straying little from the typical structure of a Rammstein piece, it is no less impressive. It begins with what can be best described as a horn. Envisage a hunt- hounds, huntsmen and whips alike. The hunter sounds the horn and the hunt is underway! Only it’s not. The pack is charged by the colossal apocalyptic machine that is Richard Kruspe (Lead Guitar) and Paul Landers (Rhythm Guitar.) The band’s repertoire is full to the brim with such riff-tastic delights and this is no exception. The power and ferocity that is a Rammstein power chord has to be heard to be believed and, most importantly, must also be heard very, very loudly.
Frontman Till Lindemann’s vocals are impeccable as always. His bass tone boom appears to handle anything flung wildly in his direction and, again despite sticking to the norm, there’s still so much experimentation song from song. ‘Haifisch’ (‘Shark’) is a majestic stampede of melody, a rarity among Rammstein’s material and is the first point of the album where Keyboardist and resident freak Christian ‘Flake’ Lorenz unleashes his spine chilling effects. The track ceases with a haunting acoustic only to lead into the monotonous bass heavy riff of ‘B*********.’ Translated as ‘Bückstabü’ which, according to Landers is a word they fabricated to mean “anything you want”, Till growls at you with unparallel malice and when the drums sound, you really ought to be sat down. Or at least armed to the teeth.
Who would have thought the band who, in the past, have written so colourfully about sadomasochism, incest and necrophilia could perpetrate a heartrenchingly beautiful love ballad like ‘Fruling in Paris’ (‘Springtime in Paris.’) It is a serenade like none other they’ve done before and Till sends shivers as he crones in French ‘non je ne regrète rien’ (no, I regret nothing.) Brilliant.No, Lindemann’s Posse are no strangers to controversy across the globe. 2004’s single ‘Mein Teil’ (‘My Part’) tells the story of Europe’s most notorious cannibal Armin Meiwes who met a man on the internet and, to cut a long story short- no pun intended- ate his genitals. The video for 2005’s first single ‘Mann Gegen Mann’ (‘Man Against Man’) sees the band and a horde of fully naked men writhing around in body oil. And, given their propensity to include all things taboo in their art, ‘Liebe ist für alle da’s first single ‘P***y’ follows much the same pattern. You may think with a name and subject like that it’d never get radio play, but it happens to be their first Number 1 in Germany. The beauty of Rammstein’s music has always been that you don’t need to understand the language to relate to the emotion it creates and, frankly, the lyrics in this particular number speak for themselves, especially as the chorus is sung entirely in English- ‘Take me now, oh don’t you see… I can’t get laid in Germany.’ And not forgetting the snigger of ‘Steck Bratwurst in dein Sauerkraut.’ Genius. It may be challenging the subject of Europe’s sex trade but to me it sounds like a creepy orgy buffet. Personally, I believe it’s their finest tune to date. The albums final 2 tracks ‘Mehr’ (‘More’) and ‘Roter Sand’ (‘Red Sand’) work excellently together, the former a ferocious mix of tempo change, varying harmonies and just sheer aggression. It closes with another example of Till Lindemann’s vocal ability, a swooning poem that leads perfectly into orchestra lead closer ‘Roter Sand’, which wouldn’t be out of place in an war movie soundtrack.
It only takes one listen to hit home the quality of the album as a whole. At times it is inventive, unpredictable and shocking and at its best it is simply butt-puckeringly powerful. Unlike, for example, previous effort ‘Rosenrot’ (2005)- which seemed a somewhat disjointed affair-, ‘Liebe ist für alle da’ could quite possibly be Rammstein’s greatest achievement. Not necessarily because it has the best and most memorable tracks but because it works and simply proves that, even after 15 years in the business, they still do it better than anyone. Saying that, it’s not the best place to begin if you’re a Rammstein virgin, it’s more the stripper on the bachelor party cake, so to speak.
Intrigued? Dude, check out:
'Asche Zu Asche' ('Herzeleid', 1995)
'Sehnsucht' (‘Sehnsucht’, 1997)
'Rein Raus' ('Mutter', 2001)
'Mein Teil' ('Reise Reise', 2004)
'Waidmanns Heil' ('Liebe ist für alle da', 2009)
on an unrelated note... loving the peru pic!
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ah first comment brucey! well, my writing style is actually the topic of applause BUT i love it too, so many precious memories in one. thanks! :)
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