186. Rammstein – Sehnsucht
Fueled by an acrimonious divorce, insomnia, pent up anger, escalating depression and a diet of Surge soda, mini Snickers bars and cigarettes, I went on this metal rampage in the late 90’s. I was listening to Korn and Slipknot and maybe even a little Limp Bizkit here and there. The pounding drums and screeching guitars were perfect for what I was feeling, but the lyrics were making me dumber for singing them. They were lyrics for kids, songs about being pushed around in school or dealing with juvenile assholes or, in the case of Fred Durst, being a juvenile asshole.
And then came Sehnsucht. I didn’t know what the hell these guys were singing about, but it was in German, so it didn’t matter. And I didn’t care. The music was so powerful and raw and heavy, it served as an excavator to my emotions. It brought up everything I was holding deep down and let me throw it up with abandon. It was like my brain was vomiting anger. Till Lindemann’s vocals were gritty, guttural and evil and even when English versions were released of Du Hast and Engel, I wouldn’t listen to them. It was so much better in the original German; the songs were able to encompass everything I needed to feel without the lyrics getting in the way, with Lindemann’s voice serving as an all-purpose primal scream. Yea, I made up my own words. I don’t know German, I can’t even make my voice sound like it’s speaking German. But when you’re dealing in heavy metal and the adrenaline that comes with six gallons of soda that makes you piss a toxic shade of green, you just make shit up until you listen to it enough times where you can finally replicate what he’s saying and you’re all like “Fuck yea! I’m singing in German!” and then you pound your fists in the air and go find a vagrant to beat the shit out of. Or, you just have a mosh pit for one in your living room. With the blinds closed.
I saw Rammstein three times on the Sehnsucht tour. I’ve never seen a band that was able to translate the clean, raw power and heaviness of a record into a live show without losing some of the feeling. But Rammstein pulled it off. Yes, there were fire and explosions and simulated sexual acts on stage, and that was all well and good and awesome. I loved the shows for that unabashed, spit in your face attitude inherent in the music, the intense bass lines, the way I got so caught up in the power of the music that I wanted to go stand in the middle of pit and take it like a man, but then I remembered I was way past the age of doing that, and probably way past the age where one is supposed to enjoy this kind of music (fine, I love the shows for the fire, too).
The most awesome thing about Sehnsucht is that even though I’m years removed from any kind of anger or bitterness or the need to lash out emotionally, and even with this new found inner peace and contentment, the music always stays new and fresh for me, without dredging up any of the negativity formerly associated with it. Where bands like Korn and Limp Bizkit held my attention momentarily and their CDs eventually became beer coasters, I will still rock the fuck out to the entirety of Sehnsucht.
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March 8th, 2009
brilliant post.
March 28th, 2009
I lived in Germany for several years, there is nothing quite like being in the middle of a bunch of Teutonicss chanting along with Til.
It’s good that knowing the lyrics doesn’t diminsh your enjoyment of the band. FWIW, most of the lyrics are prety nihilistic, or at least sociopathic, but who cares if it rocks?
May 24th, 2009
It’s good that you never listened to the english translation of Du Hast — the lyrics have almost nothing to do with the original German. They were merely a marketing ploy to get more kids in on the action. I can’t say the same about Engel because I never listened to it, either.
July 13th, 2009
Best live band ever; and Ive seen pretty much everybody