Information
Date: March 30, 2001
Source: Metal-is
Interviewed: Paul and Christoph
Interview
With strap-on prosthetic penises, death-defying onstage pyromania and accusations, albeit erroneously, of fascist leanings, legend would have you believe many far-fetched tales about the men behind controversial German industrial metal outfit Rammstein.
Gallantly thrusting some stout 'cock' into shock rock, the Berlin-based sextet has gone boldly where no other German-speaking band has gone before - global. Pocketing coveted awards in their native homeland (including an award for Most Successful German Artist Abroad), their ground-breaking debut, 1995's 'Herzeleid', and follow-up 'Sehnsucht' have resulted in millions of album sales worldwide, earning them not only an American Grammy nomination and a place on the US Billboard chart, but affirmation of their ominous notoriety - as an astute Playboy critic noted, "Rammstein make Metallica look like pussies."
Some may also say - discreetly, of course - that this motley crew make Marilyn Manson's sorry outfit and their half-baked copycat ilk look like child's play. Those with even less of a will to live might tell you that whereas the likes of Marshall Mathers would almost certainly hide behind your mum's new curtains, Rammstein would wipe their dicks on them. But don't shoot the messenger.
Nearly five years since their last full-length studio effort and two since the stopgap offering 'Rammstein Live Aus Berlin' comes their long-awaited new album 'Mutter' - that's 'Mother' to you non Deutsch-speaking plebs. On the eve of its anticipated release, and whilst fellow members Till Lindemann (vocals), Richard Kruspe (guitar), Flake Lorenz (keyboard) and Oliver Riedel (bass) were off no doubt polluting the minds of vulnerable youngsters with their Gothic horror tactics, metal-is' Rosanna Slater straddled the language barrier to endure the stern wrath of guitarist Paul Landers and drummer Christoph Schneider.
Metal-Is:It's been a lengthy five years since the release of 'Sehnsucht' and over two since the live album. Hope you don't mind being asked, but where have you been? Christoph:We've been sleeping... Paul:And when we finally got out of bed, we went out on tour for a couple of years (including a stint supporting Kiss in South America) and, to be honest, we're not like a lot of other groups in the sense that when we're on tour, we find it very difficult to write new material as a band. So when we got back off the road, we had to take a break in order to make time to write new songs - and for us that takes a long, long time.
Metal-Is:Better late than never. Tell us about the new album. Paul:It's called 'Mutter', meaning 'mother', and the album takes its name from the song of the same name on the album, because we thought it was a word that suits the mood of the music. We also wanted to get away from the theme of longing - we didn't want to copy the same sense or atmosphere as before, so we thought it should be more natural for us, more natural with our instruments, but with more attitude and in much more of a rock style than previous Rammstein. We certainly wanted it to rock more - but there're still the good melodies, the good sounds and the clearly identifiable Rammstein rhythms.
Metal-Is:Phew. No major departure, then? With you having joined the likes of Korn, Orgy and Limp Bizkit on a leg of the 1998 stateside Family Values tour, we needn't brace ourselves for any nu-metal nonsense, right? Still exercising the uncompromising fusion of industrial, metal, classical and prog rock elements? Paul:Yeah, sure, but saying that - although overall and for the most part it is atypical Rammstein - there are a few styles we've explored that are new to us. This time we went as far as to bring in a live orchestra (the Babelsberg Film Orchestra on the track 'Mein Herz Brennt') and tried out other styles including a punk vibe and even some jungle beats. Christoph:I think Till's singing voice has developed a lot as well, but as hard as we tried, we couldn't prevent that from happening (laughs). Basically, as you'd expect, it's a natural progression and although we are proud to say we have developed artistically, the sound remains unmistakably Rammstein.
Metal-Is:Having already been permitted entry to the worldwide mainstream, what do Rammstein hope to achieve with this album? Paul:The little problem we have with being asked that is that we have achieved so much already, so much more than we could have ever hoped for, or expected. We never even dreamed that we'd be able to travel to all these different countries with our music. That's why we've taken a step back and taken a bit of time to reflect and think of new goals, but we haven't quite decided what goals we're going for yet. Christoph:Of course, it's not that there's nothing left for us to achieve, it's just that we're happy doing what we're doing and we're happy to keep going at a comfortable and steady pace. We like to try and appreciate the here and now.
Metal-Is:This aforementioned international fame and recognition has, however, eluded you to a degree in Britain, for example. Predictable a question as it may seem, have you ever considered releasing alternative English-spoken versions to cater for the non German-speaking populace? Paul:As you can imagine, we are asked this a lot and have considered the ramifications of such actions since we formed back in 1994. Although we have refused to compromise, the history of Rammstein has shown and proven that it is possible to become internationally successful even with German lyrics. Furthermore, to take our lyrics and translate them into English would mean all the poetry would be lost. If we were to sing in English, we'd have to live in or move to an English-speaking society in order to understand the culture and write authentically - so it could be based on our experiences.
Metal-Is:So what do you think of German band Guano Apes, for example, who have chosen to sing in English in order to take a calculated stab at international stardom. Do you respect their decision or, patriotically, do you find it somewhat traitorous? Christoph:Until now, record companies in Germany have thought that, as a German band, one can only be very successful if one is very German. But Guano Apes have broken the rules and proven almost the opposite - which is good. You don't have to sound German; all that's important is that you make good music. She (Sandra Nasic, Guano Apes' singer) has a very good voice, but the band do sound very international - American or English, or whatever. There are a number of bands who aren't that good when they copy the American sound or formula, and they're always going to be number two - they'll never make it.
Metal-Is:Dramatically doleful vocals, operatic melodies and the trademark horrific romanticism adorn 'Sonne', the first single to be lifted from the album. What is the reasoning behind the concept of the Snow White and the Seven Dwarves video? Paul:Firstly, the lyrics have nothing to do with the concept of the video. Secondly, you'll notice that there are only six dwarves - because there are only six of us in the band. Either that, or the original fairytale was written incorrectly at the time. Christoph:We had several different ideas for the video, all of which were very good. One idea was that we'd be a crew of bomber pilots about to drop an atom bomb on a city. In the video, we would have tried to depict how it's possible for human beings to willingly drop atom bombs on other human beings. But, of course, that would have been deemed highly politically incorrect, because, as usual, it would have been misunderstood. And as we don't like to have to explain ourselves all the time, we decided to opt for another idea we would have to go through the rigmarole of having to explain. Paul:The lyrics contain the words ' Here comes the sun' and that, we thought, would have fitted in very well with a nuclear impact. I guess we were bothered with all the shit we knew we'd get.
Metal-Is:Many bands try and imitate but there is no band that truly sounds like Rammstein. What is it that makes your sound so inimitable? Christoph:There are bands, as you'd expect in Germany, who try their hardest to emulate us, but as for having that unique sound, I suppose it's like asking a really pretty actress, "Why do other actresses try to look like you?" and "Why don't they quite look like you?" Or you might look at the relationship of a couple who get on very well and are a match made in heaven - you can't then ask another couple who don't have such a harmonious relationship why they're not as close and suited as the other couple... Paul:(putting his hand mockingly on Schneider's knee) That's right... we've found each other! But as we've always said, our style came out of knowing exactly what we didn't want to sound like.
Metal-Is:Controversy has plagued the band from the outset, beginning with the artwork for debut album 'Herzeleid', which depicts the band shirtless and sheened against a backdrop of yellow flowers, leading to the belief that you were willing progenitors of some new master race. With this in mind, surely a song such as new track 'Feuer Frei' (featuring an audible shower of gun shots) only serves to encourage those who claim you advocate Nazism and fascism? Paul:It's part of our music, part of our image - we don't care any more. With the song 'Links 234' (accompanied by the sound of militant marching), you need to actually understand the meaning of the lyrics to understand that particular song. It goes some way to describing our position in the political sense - but, ironically, although it is the one song that strives to explain our political views, it happens to be one of the songs with lyrics that are heavily misunderstood. But what can we do? It's down to other people's stupidity, not ours. Christoph:'Links' means 'left' and the lyrics are ' Links, links, links' - how much more obvious can we make it? We wanted to prove, with this very song, we're not automatically right-wing because we're German. We're not nasty or evil. But as many people don't speak German, and even those who do comprehend our language still don't understand the complexity of the lyrics, they just hear the music and by listening to the sound of it form the opinion that we're a nasty band. We just have to live with it. We've created our own style and, of course, it sounds Germanic - but all we can do is be ourselves and we have learned not to give a damn.
Metal-Is:Are you perversely honoured by being so misunderstood, or do you find it frustrating? Paul:To start with we thought it was funny and then we found it frustrating, but these days we just don't give a shit. Christoph:What we're doing is holding up a mirror to people and they can see in our songs what they want to see. And anyone who sees us in the wrong corner should maybe think about their own thoughts, feelings, attitudes and problems. Paul:We have been made political scapegoats in Germany. This entire Nazi theme is a product of the German press and what we fear the most, and have always feared, is that there will be people from the extreme right wing who will be attracted to our music and come to our concerts. Even if they were to come, they'd see that we have nothing to do with it, we're not Nazis at all. Anyway, it has calmed down a bit, thank goodness. But it seems to be the only reason we're known in England.
Metal-Is:You are defined largely by your live performances, with frontman Till Lindemann and his asbestos coat engulfed in flames (don't try it at home kids - he earned qualifications as a pyrotechnician to achieve such hazardous stage effects) and of course the strap-on phalluses donned for live favourite 'Bück Dich'. Do you ever worry that your image may overshadow the music? Paul:(deadpan) From time to time we do play without all the stage effects and we do notice that people still like our music. Christoph:I don't know where we'd be if we didn't have the whole show and the showmanship - but I'm sure we would have got somewhere! We are what we are and the show is all a part of that, where six people get together and something magic comes out of it. Paul:When we first started Rammstein, we had no discussions with journalists at all - not that we've got anything against journalists, you understand - we just wanted to present the Rammstein experience on its own merits. Christoph:But we don't get out much these days in our old age and we like to talk! We express ourselves better through our music - but we can handle any shitty question you throw at us.
Metal-Is:Is there anything we shouldn't be asking, then? Paul:Well, we'd better not talk about Till and the little fluffy pet rabbit on his balcony at home. Christoph:He will slaughter it for Christmas dinner. But don't tell anyone.
Metal-Is:OK - Mutter's the word...