Published on Nov 22, 2004
Back in 1998, German industrial metallers Rammstein made a
surprising mainstream breakthrough in North America, despite
singing exclusively in German, on the strength of their massively
popular single “Du Hast,” from their
Sehnsucht album (which had been massively popular in Europe
upon its release a year earlier). Their fiery (literally) stage
show and controversial, pseudo-fascist imagery cemented their
status as one of the must-see metal acts of that year.
In 2001 they returned with their third studio album, the
critically acclaimed
Mutter, which didn’t yield any smash hits of the scale of
“Du Hast” but certainly didn’t hurt their popularity either. A high
profile scene in the 2002 summer action blockbuster
XXX continued their momentum.
So, the traditional three-year gap between albums has elapsed
and right on schedule the world has been given a new Rammstein
album, their fourth, called
Reise, Reise (“Journey, Journey” – no, there’s no Steve
Perry guest appearance!). The same six musicians who formed the
band a little over a decade ago are all still in place, and once
again deliver the goods in their unique manner.
Rammstein is a band in which artistic growth comes in very
subtle forms, and honestly, I think that’s the best method for them
to employ. They’ve carved out a very distinctly Germanic-sounding
style of industrial metal that is both brutal and punishing yet
simultaneously filled with vulnerability, sentimentality, and a
good dose of dark, cynical humour. They’ve become so good at
employing this sound that it would be a shame for them to radically
alter it or experiment in ill advised ways, and being the pros that
they are, they are fully aware of this.
While that could be interpreted as meaning that
Reise, Reise is just more of the same, that really wouldn’t
be doing this wonderful CD any justice. The album basically takes
everything that was great about their sound in the first place and
refines it to the point of perfection. I’ve been a fan of theirs
since I first heard their music in the mid ’90s, but this is the
first album to fully omit any filler tracks. They seemingly went to
great lengths to make sure that every song has a memorable hook,
all without abandoning the headbang quotient.
The proceedings open in typically grand style with the epic
title track, with its absolutely huge sound, from the massive
guitar chords, to the orchestral blasts, to lead singer Till
Lindemann’s deep, ultra-masculine baritone, to the moody melodies
inspired by the German romantic classical era, ended on a
surprisingly tender accordion passage. A fantastic song that
contains all the elements that make Rammstein a great band.
From there the listener is immediately launched into the
heaviest song of Rammstein’s career so far, the relentlessly
pounding “Mein Teil” (“My Part” — an unsubtle reference to male
genitalia). The song’s lyrics were inspired by the sensational case
of consensual cannibalism between two rather disturbed men in
Germany that made international headlines in 2003. Lindemann really
gets into character here by adopting a creepier way of singing than
we’ve heard before, and it works fantastically. Add to this the
shout-along chorus and the hilariously sick lyrics and you’ve got
yourself another winner.
The rest of the tracks on the album contain a ton of the
expected jackhammer riffs that will have you head banging along in
agreement to their excellence, as well as Flake Lorenz’s patented
electronic fills to add melodic depth, but there are a few
noteworthy additions to Rammstein’s sonic palette, such as the
haunting vocal harmonies in “Dalai Lama” (no translation needed,
methinks), the mainly acoustic propelled “Los” (“Gone”), complete
with surf guitar riffs and a harmonica solo that make the song the
perfect companion for a night drive in the Arizona desert, and the
highly catchy layering of Russian and German choruses in the
up-tempo “Moskau,” with plenty of cutesy female Russian vocals
supplied by none other than TATU, the teenage duo that caused a
stir in the international music scene a few years back with their
lesbian schoolgirl image.
The only misstep that I can really find on Reise, Reise is the
first single (in North America, that is – in Europe the first
single is the far better “Mein Teil”), “Amerika.” In keeping with
the popular pastime of America bashing among many bands these days,
the song and its accompanying video provide a sarcastic dose of
social criticism deploring the ever increasing expansion of
American culture around the world. That’s all fine and dandy in my
opinion, but my problem with the song is that its presentation is
quite cheesy by Rammstein’s standards. First of all, the choruses
are sung in English, giving me the impression of a misguided
attempt to score another hit on this side of the pond. And while
it’s true for the most part that they kept their promise of several
years ago that they would “never sing a song in English again”
(since the verses are in German), compromise just really doesn’t
suit these guys well, and Rammstein singing anything in English
just renders them kinda hokey sounding. Image-wise, a very poor
choice for the first single in my opinion, even if the song is too
catchy for me to dismiss as awful.
In what has seemingly become a Rammstein tradition, the band has
once again included an obligatory soaring ballad, this time found
in the beautifully sad “Ohne Dich” (“Without You”). If you have any
doubts as to their songwriting range and talent, just listen to
this one track to be convinced otherwise.
And so we come to end of a fantastic musical journey. Even as a
fan of many years, I honestly didn’t believe that Rammstein could
still deliver an album of such high quality as
Reise, Reise. If you liked their previous releases, then you
will no doubt like this one just as much, if not more, and if you
are a potential newcomer to the band then I would heartily
recommend this disc as the starting point. It’s one of the best
hard rock/metal releases of 2004.