Controversy fueled by racism

Most of us know how Rammstein has been involved and linked to some incredible controversies ranging from promotion of Nazi propaganda, to inspiring mass shootings. While the band is currently “off the radar”, in the past Rammstein has been scrutinized and unjustifiably accused of such actions due to what I believe is the product of our negative views of Germans. As discussed in an early blog post, Rammstein brings authentic German national identity to their lyrics and imagery in a positive light. However, not all reviewers and academics see these indicators as positive. Some even misinterpret their imagery completely as allusions to neo-Nazism when they were not supposed to mean anything at all.

One of the more baffling and desperate attempts to connect the band to Nazism is references to their stage presence. An article by Robert G.H. Burns on German symbolism in rock music uses one of the bands most famous performances to demonstrate the use of the bands neo-classic, neo-Nazi imagery. Burns explains the opening of the performance as such:

“…stage lighting and spotlights were dimmed to highlight a large red curtain, illuminated by flaming torches, which covered the stage area. This scene may be construed as reminiscent of the Nuremburg rallies of the late 1930s that often took place at night with red Nazi banners illuminated in a similar way. As the curtains opened, single spotlights separately illuminated each individual member of the band, who remained completely static.”

Wow. I can’t tell you how many concerts and shows I’ve been to where there was a large red curtain before the act went on. I guess I should have immediately thought of Nuremburg rallies! He then continues to describe this static, mechanical nature through their costuming and physique as a reference of “mechanical-kinetic constructivism that in existed in German theater in the 1920s” (which was left-winged, by the way). The costumes were made out of silver and black material, with some members using white contacts that gave them a more mechanical look. He also mentions the silver makeup used to highlight strong facial features, as well as a “visual emphasis on the muscular physique of the band members, some of who performed bare-chested.” I’m pretty sure Oliver Riedel (the bass player who is the only one shirtless in the beginning), would not be considered a poster-boy for extreme masculine physique, but to each his own I guess. I would like to add a side note that the groups entrance to this seems nothing more than a very cool, exciting, and powerful way to entertain such a large audience. The effect of the members seemingly coming out of thin-air gives the audience a message stating that I interpret as, “We are Rammstein. We are here.” But the kicker that made me laugh written by this author is:

“The emphasis placed on the static and physical forms in Rammstein’s imagery can be compared to the works of sculptors Josep Thorak, Fritz Klimsch and Arno Breker, all of whom were official state artists of the Third Reich.”

That is a serious accusation, and a seriously absurd one. In 1998, Rammstein was considered a more industrial-techno genre band. We all know the 90s was certainly a time for silly, futuristic costumes, especially where German techno is concerned. Take a look at these pictures.

When I think of 90s German raves/techno, I picture these people below. And these guys…
And this…

Oh, and these guys from Dude, Where’s My Car?

In the late 90s and at this concert, Rammstein looked like this:

Nazis, or nerdy stereotypical German techno-garb? You decide.
Here is also a full video of the concert Burns is referencing. All you need to watch is the first 2 minutes to see what he is describing. You be the judge on whether this screams Nuremburg and the Third Reich:

This is also not the first time the group has suffered criticism for promoting masculinity as National Socialist propaganda. The first album Herzeleid, released in 1995, originally had a cover that had all six members on the front without a shirt on. This received much criticism that they were promoting “poster boys for the Master Race”. For the American release, they were forced to change the cover to show just their faces. The original cover is still unavailable in the US today unless you were to get an import. It is obvious that this claim was due solely to the fact that they are Germans. The 90s had it’s fair share of shirtless men –  and you never heard of their covers changed for being too politically provocative.

Original cover:

US cover:

Probably one of the most important Rammstein reviews in America was from a New York Times article that also alluded to the imagined neo-Nazi concept of the band. The author Berlinski wrote that,

“A huge curtain dropped, revealing a row of massive Potemkin amplifiers that flashed with the band’s insignia, something like a swastika.”

Here is the bands insignia:

I just don’t get it. The image is clearly and simply a capital R crossed with a lowercase T representing letters in the band’s name – Rammstein. Why reference something that doesn’t look like a swastika? I guarantee if the band was not German, this comment would not even be thought of. People are searching high and low to promote a not-so-PC band like Rammstein as taboo – something their children shouldn’t listen to, and something to continually give reason to promote bigotry towards Germans. What happens with an article like this is that non-Rammstein fans read this and create an uneducated vision of the band and assume the writers point of view is the correct one. Articles like this, especially in America, gave Rammstein their bad name.

The point of Rammstein is that they do write about uncomfortable topics – such as sex, masochism, and murder. They write about these things to start a commotion and gain popularity – and it worked. They aren’t Germany’s most successful international act without reason. In essence, they did this without ever meaning to promote nationalist propaganda, except possibly once…

One of their biggest controversies was the use of clips from famous director and actress Leni Riefenstahl’s nationalistic propaganda film, Olympia. The film documented the Berlin Olympics in 1936 and was sanctioned by Hitler to create a revival of German nationalism. The film showed powerful and fit athletic bodies (some nude) performing an array of actions. The film was meant to showcase to the world German prowess and pride. Riefenstahl was arrested after WWII, but released on no charges – claiming that she was not aware of what was going on or what she was filming for. Rammstein used parts of this film for a video for Stripped, a Depeche Mode cover (which is in English). Rammstein took out all images of Nazi propaganda, and simply used it because it was beautiful imagery. In 2007, almost 10 years after the video, Lindemann was asked about it in a Playboy Magazine interview and had this response:

Playboy: For your video of “Stripped” you used some material from Leni Riefenstahl’s “Olympia” movie. Would you do such a thing again?

Lindemann: No. Because I am fed up with allegations of being a right wing band. My daughter – my dearest in my life – came to me at that time to ask me: tell me, do you play in a Nazi band? At this point I knew we had overstepped a border. That was too much for me.

It is clear that at one point, Rammstein did try to spark controversy for the hell of it. I just don’t think they expected to see it hit that hard. It is also interesting to play around with the “too soon?” concept. I wouldn’t doubt if Rammstein was trying to use this imagery to see how far the world’s perception has come. It became clear that nobody has forgotten the negative connotations of Olympia, even though it was so long ago. The band almost begs to for an answer as to how long their music, their people, and their country will suffer for something they had no direct involvement in. It is the similar to still blaming white Americans for enslaving blacks and taking Native American land – something absolutely horrible that none of us alive today (at least in younger generations) had anything to do with. Here is the video for Stripped:

One important progression that Rammstein did demonstrate to the world was the ever-so controversial live performance of “Bück dich” or “Bend Over”. In 1998, Rammstein performed a lewd act on stage that consisted of Lindemann taking the keyboardist, Flake Lorenz, to the front of the stage to bend over. Lindemann proceeded to take out a large dildo from his pants that squirted a liquid white substance onto him and then into the audience. This act landed the members one night in jail in Massachusetts. Here is the original 1998 version:

After a 10 year drought, Rammstein finally played the US in December of 2011 at Madison Square Garden. The show was a complete success, which led them to do two more tours in the US after. In 2012, 14 years after the original incident, Rammstein performed the controversial “Bück dich” act again in the United States without any issues. In a way, it is quite liberating to see how far we have come as a nation to be more open to these acts as nothing more than hilarious and satirical – which they were originally meant to be. Rammstein was successfully able to take a “sore” event and bring it out in the open again. Here is one of their 2012 performances of “Bück dich”:

To further emphasize their satirical concepts of sex tourism, Rammstein released yet another controversial video. This time, it was for the 2009s “Pussy”, which was literally an X-rated pornography where the band members were shown having full on sexual encounters with women. As a side note, the members heads were fixed upon actors bodies, so they were not the ones actually committing the act. During the live performances of it, Lindemann mounts a very large, phallic-painted cannon that shoots out white foam into the audience for a few minutes. This extremely comical event further emphasizes their stress on the comedic value of dubious lyric material – such as sex and sex tourism.

Getting back to the lines of having no direct involvement in events, Rammstein was further accused of inspiring the two gunmen in the Columbine High School massacre – who were fans of the band. The group issued a statement:

“The members of Rammstein express their condolences and sympathy to all affected by the recent tragic events in Denver. They wish to make it clear that they have no lyrical content or political beliefs that could have possibly influenced such behavior. Additionally, members of Rammstein have children of their own, in whom they continually strive to instill healthy and non-violent values.”

They were also linked to the hostage crisis in Russia where the hostage-takers listened to Rammstein to keep themselves “fired-up” during the siege. Subsequently, Rammstein was banned from playing a show in Moscow in 2002 out of fear that they would draw skinheads (which is quite ignorant, knowing that Rammstein is completely unaffiliated with skinhead music).

As a backlash towards their nationalist accusations, Rammstein released the song “Links-2-3-4” (“Left-2-3-4”) as a sentiment that they were on the left side. Kruspe points out:

“…my heart beats on the left, two, three, four.’ It’s simple. If you want to put us in a political category, we’re on the left side, and that’s the reason we made the song.” (The Grand Rapids Press, Jul. 22, 2001).

However, as a side note to this, the unaccustomed listener would most likely hear the marching of heavy boots in the beginning and throughout the song and instantly connect it to a militaristic sound. Another snide remark from the New York Times article mentioned above that during the performance of this song, the author thought she heard the crowd shouting “Hi!” in unison – which she had to mention only sounded just different enough from “Heil”. I don’t even know where in the song that could possibly be interpreted…

With large flame effects and some satirical-yet-uncomfortable stage antics, Rammstein packs a serious punch that forces you to pay attention. For some people, it is almost too much attention. By wanting to show the world authenticity, the group has received much unwarranted criticism for being extreme right-winged and neo-Nazis. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like the world is going to completely forgive Germany soon. Even though steps have been taken to promote positivism, Germans, in essence, are still not allowed to be “German” without negative connotations.

Folktales and Nationalism

In this blog post I will be analyzing the lyrical and imagery content of Rammstein’s most controversial songs. I found quite the positive publication by Martina Luke on the use of Rammstein’s lyrics in a high school and college German class setting. It provides a great insight into comparing their lyrics to classic German poetry, folklore, and myth.

One of the most obvious nationalist signifiers in music is the use of a countries’ folklore. However, no other country embraced the use of folklore than Germany itself. With the rise of romanticism in the 19th century came a increased interest in mythos and folk tales. Most notably are the Brothers Grimm, who are famously known for their collection and publications of some of the world’s most beloved fairy tales. Snow White, Rapunzel, The Frog Price, and Hansel and Gretel, are a few examples of these stories.

Another important example of this is Wagner’s epic Der Ring des Nibelungen opera – which was strongly based on Norse mythology. The Ring cycle was an incredible national signifier for Germans in the 19th century. The content of the opera was meant to instill a sense of pride and authenticity for Germans in seeing their powerful roots grounded in the Norse mythos – at least that is what Wagner hoped. However, it did certainly continue to exemplify German music as the “universal” – the utmost standard amongst the nations. It’s sheer size made it untouchable – and no composer since has attempted to compose an opera so large.

I can go on about German nationalism, but I hoped to just give you a brief overview to understand how important folklore was to Germany. Upon analysis of many Rammstein songs, it is obvious that they loosely or strongly (depending on the song) adopted famous German texts into their lyrics and imagery – with a dark twist. In a way, their dark interpretations of these folk tales are emulating the Brothers Grimm who were also criticized for their macabre versions of the stories.

Let’s first take a look at Rammstein’s “Dalai Lama”, off 2004’s Reise, Reise. It is well known that “Dalai Lama” is a modern take on Goethe’s famous “Erlkönig”. In Goethe’s text, a father and son are traveling on horseback as the child comes in contact with the deadly Elf King. The Elf King promises the child good fortunes if he goes with him, and ends with the child dying for him. In Dalai Lama, the text starts off in a similar situation, with a father and son on a plane ride. The child hears the voice of the “Lord in the heavens” who also promises the child that he will be good to him if he goes. Before the plane is about to crash, the father is gripping the child and accidentally suffocates him, which in essence proves that the “Lord” has won. With interest of space, I will only provide the English translations of both to compare the stories. However, if you understand some German, the wording used by Rammstein is certainly intriguing and worth checking out.

Dalai Lama

An airplane lies in the evening wind
On board is also a man with his child
They sit safe, they sit warm
And thus go into sleep’s snare

In three hours they’ll be there
For mommy’s birthday
Visibility is good
The ski is clear

On and on towards disaster
We have to live until we die
Man does not belong in the air
So the Lord in heaven calls
His sons in the wind
Bring me this creature

The child has lost track of time
Then an echo jumps into his ears
A dull roar thunders through the night*
And the cloud god laughs
Shakes the human cargo awake

On and on towards disaster
We have to live until we die
And the child speaks to his father
Don’t you hear the thunder
That is the king of all the winds
He wants to make me his child

Out of the clouds drops a chorus
It creeps into his tiny ear
Out of the clouds drops a chorus
It creeps into his tiny ear

Come here, stay here
We’re good to you
Come here, stay here
We’re your brothers

The storm embraces the aircraft
The cabin pressure drops rapidly
A dull roar thunders through the night*
In panic the human cargo screams

On and on towards disaster
We have to live until we die
And the child pleads with God
Heaven take back the wind
Bring us safely back to earth

Out of the clouds drops a chorus
It creeps into his tiny ear
Out of the clouds drops a chorus
It creeps into his tiny ear

Come here, stay here
We’re good to you
Come here, stay here
We’re your brothers

The father now holds the child tightly
Presses him very close
Doesn’t notice his (child’s) breathing difficulty
But fear knows no mercy
So the father with his arms
Squeezes the soul out of the child
This (soul) sits on the wind and sings:

Come here, stay here
We’re good to you
Come here, stay here
We’re your brothers

Come here, stay here
We’re good to you
Come here, stay here
We’re your brothers

Erlkönig

Who rides so late through the windy night?
The father holding his young son so tight.
The boy is cradled safe in his arm,
He holds him sure and he holds him warm.

Why is your face so frightened my son?
The King of elves, father, see him yon?
The Elfin King with his tail and crown?
It is the fog, my son, streaming down.

Yes, you my dear child, come go with me!
The games I play, you’ll like them, come see.
The shore is coloured with flow’rs in bloom,
My mother’s gold gowns, you will see soon.

 Oh father, father, can you not hear
What the elfking promises? I fear!
Be calm, stay quiet my dearest son,
The wind blows the dry leaves of autumn.

My darling boy, won’t you come with me?
I have daughters in whose care you’ll be.
My daughters dance round the fairy ring.
Each night they’ll cradle you, dance and sing.

Father, dear father, can you not see
The elf king’s daughter staring at me?
My son, my son, I see it so well:
Gray meadows on which the moonlight fell.

I love you for your beauty of course,
If free you’ll not come, I will use force.
Father, dear father, he’s touching me.
Of elf king’s hurt, father please, free me.

Dread grips the father, he spurs the roan,
In loving arms he feels the boy moan.
At last, the courtyard, with fear and dread,
He looks at the child; the boy is dead.

When it comes to dark fairy tales, no Rammstein album compares to 2001’s Mutter (Mother), where traditional German folklores are heavily expanded on. The album opens up with (a personal favorite) “Mein Herz brennt” (“My heart burns”). The album opens up with the lyric, “Nun liebe Kinder gebt fein Acht…” which translates to “Now, dear children, pay attention.” This brings the listener instantly into a fairy tale-like world of childhood and sets the tone for the rest of the song and album. The song continues on to be from the point of view of Sandmann (another Germanic folk character), a figure which we innocently knows puts sand in children’s eyes to put them to sleep. However, the dark Rammstein twist has Sandmann telling children that demons and ghosts will come to them at night, as he has the power to “blackmail the eyelids”. Recently in 2012, Rammstein released an extremely long-awaited video for this song, which accurately captures the imagery portrayed in this nightmarish song.

Sonne, another hit off of Mutter, was depicted as a twist on Snow White for their music video. Although many ideas were thrown around for the video, they ended up with a Snow White theme. The lyrics, to my knowledge, do not relate to the music video. However, it is quite interesting to see yet another Germanic folktale being depicted by Rammstein even darker than originally intended. In the video (posted below), the members of Rammstein are depicted as Snow White’s dwarves who are also coal miners. They live to serve Snow White (like they do in the original tale), but are abused by her sexually and are manipulated to get her gold and cocaine. In the Rammstein twist, it is the dwarves that give her the poisoned apple to eat.

Lastly, the song “Spieluhr” (“Music Box”) is another tune associated with childlike themes and death. The start of the chorus “Hoppe, hoppe Reiter” is part of a well-known German nursery rhyme where a child is bounced on their parents’ knee. Instead of a playful nursery rhyme, the lyrical content talks about a child who was thought to be dead and buried alive. The child then “awakens” on first snowfall, and begins to sing from the ground. This can also allude to the tale of Snow White, since she was also thought to be dead and buried alive.

These morose depictions are common in the lyrics of Rammstein, most notably the album Mutter. There was also controversy surrounding the album cover – which is simply a picture of a dead baby. The title track “Mutter” itself is told from the point of view of a clone who longs for a mother that never existed. An article by Littlejohn and Putnam theorize that the lyrics are about the feeling of abandonment and loss of identity after German reunification. These references to childhood themes and folktales can possibly be alluding to the members’ personal childhoods, where all that they knew in East Germany was taken from them.
I don’t, however, think it lies on that level. I believe that Rammstein has always, and continue to promote a positive German identity to re-establish to the younger generations. Quoted from an interview, guitarist Richard Kruspe states:

“Our music,” he explained, “is German, and that’s what comes through. What’s naturally in the music is what makes it so German. We are simply trying to make the music that we are able to make. The classical music, the music of our ancestors, is passed down in a certain way. We have a feeling for it. American music, black music, we don’t know how to do that—”

“We like it heavy, bombastic, romantic. Like the direction that Wagner takes,” said Kruspe-Bernstein. “No other Germans do it the way we do it. We’re the only ones who do it the way Germans should. The others try to imitate the English and the Americans. We’re almost too German for Germany.” The thought seemed to pain him. “The Germans are a bit ashamed of their nationality. They’ve had a disturbed relationship to it since World War II. We’re trying to establish a natural relationship to our identity.”

Kruspe specifying Wagner in relation to German identity is a large indicator that they are, in fact, trying to re-create the power of “German-ness” without negative connotations. Rammstein portraying a sense authenticity is what I believe is their biggest draw. Many other German groups have sang in English to appeal to an international audience. But with German lyrics, and outwardly German folkloric references and musical inspiration, it roots the band in what they want to show to the world  – authentic German pride. What is the most interesting about this is how the band attempts to demonstrate authenticity without touching the concept of Nazism. While Rammstein aims to be dark, brooding, and maniacal (like most metal bands), they have chosen to do this through fairy tales. The same result can easily be done if they did allude to Nazi propaganda – but they have never chosen to go this route. I believe using fairy-tales, poetry, and folklore reminds the world (and Germans) of the positive contributions they made pre-WWII – when Germans had culture they could be proud of without fear. This is a major reason why I chose the title of the blog, “Ich bin stolz, ein Deutscher zu sein” which simply means “I am proud to be German.” In most countries this statement would be a positive reinforcement of national pride. However, this specific slogan is associated with right-winged national socialists and can be extremely offensive. It is incredible to think that a positive sentence of “I’m proud to be German” can be seen so negatively. This is why I question how long it will take the world to disassociate Nazism with Germans – or if that could ever be possible.

What exactly is “Nazi-Rock?”

In order to properly dismiss the right-winged claims against Rammstein, we first need to define and explore what Nazi-rock actually is. After reading quite a bit a literature on the topic, I am happy to announce that academically, Rammstein is not affiliated in the Nazi-rock category.

The term “Nazi-rock” associates itself with music from extreme right-wing ideals of German skinheads. However, not many people know that skinheads did not originate from Germany. Skinhead subculture emerged as an offshoot of the British “mods” of the 1960s. Mods could be closely compared to the “hipster” style of today. The mod style was fashion-obsessed, coffee-house-going youngsters living in metropolitan London. At the core of it, modern American jazz was specifically the music craze. Mods typically aimed to look like white-collar, upper-class citizens, even though they were most likely working-class. As the trend continued, the mod style became more commercialized and started to depart from its working-class roots. Eventually, a split began to form between those who wanted to keep the feminine, hippie style and those who began to cut their hair short and wear more proletarian clothing. These were called “hard mods” and were the precursor of the first skinheads.

The center of the mod life was American jazz and Jamaican ska. Young Jamaican immigrants modeled themselves on the now traditional “rude boy” of the Kingston ghettos. The rude boy offered a sharp look that resonated with the hard mod style. However, style aside, music was the most important element between skinheads and black immigrants. Skinheads embraced their music while the reggae artists, in turn, produced albums aimed toward this white audience in a genre labeled “skinhead reggae”. Because of this close relationship with black immigrants, the original skinhead identity was, in fact, standardized around black music.

In the early 1970s, a rift occurred between the right-wing and left-winged skins. The right tried to dismiss their subculture’s black roots where the left continued to embrace it. Also during this time, a new version of punk-rock was emerging called Oi! which is now associated directly with right-winged politics, skinheads, and Nazism.  Generally, punk music was seen as leftist. When Oi! came into being, it was an outlet for right-winged politics. Many ex-punks became these second-generation skinheads, but adopted the harsh and shock-inducing style of punk which was more masculine. As a reaction against this, “true” skinheads tried to stress the “original” look as an authenticity test of a true skin. Brown explains this well:

“Violators of the proper codes were not skinheads, but “bald punks,” a category to which racists-belong. The connection between right-wing politics and “inauthentic” modes of dress was personified in the figure of the “bone head”, a glue-sniffing, bald-headed supporter of the extreme right, sporting facial tattoos, a union-jack T-shirt, and “the highest boots possible.” ”

Like most fashion statements, the skinhead style was a societal rebellion. The aesthetic is represented as a reaction of the working-class to the “feminization of men” from the hippie movement. While skinhead subculture was originally an aesthetic, outward look, complexities formed between politics and music. It became a subculture where one’s identity was stereotyped solely because of their outward appearance.

Although Oi! was not originally intended to be politicized, it became synonymous with the right-wing due to lyrical content (working-class pride, repression), and the violence surrounding the music. Riots broke out at reggae and Oi! concerts constantly, having racial “turf wars” over venues. A compilation album released entitled Strength Through Oi! which was a pun of the Nazi organization “Strength Through Joy” was the final straw for the skin-head and Oi! music reputation due to the connotations of the name and cover art, and became cemented as an extreme right-winged sub culture. Here is an except from the album:

The critical cross-cover point from England to Germany was through Ian Stuart Donaldson, founder and frontman of the band Skrewdriver, and a member of the National Front. Skrewdriver was one of the first Oi! bands that specifically promoted right-wing views. In 1985, Donaldson created the “White Noise Club” that released right-wing bands to Britain. He then branched out to the German label Rock-O-Rama to release these bands in Germany as part of his Blood and Honor movement. Even though Skrewdriver did not perform in Germany until 1989, their shows “purposely resembled Nazi rallies, with hundreds of shaved-head skins shouting Sieg Heil as Donaldson held forth from the stage.”

It is understandable that during and after unification of Germany in 1989 that there were tensions, political unrest, and feelings of lost identity amongst German youth. For East Germans especially, since the East was considered left, the youth had to adopt right beliefs in order to rebel against their quickly-changing world. Subsequently, these people latched onto the right-winged Oi! music. In the chapter of Policing Pop by Barber-Kersovan, the author cites a study by Wolfgang Melzer in 1992 finding that 40% of young Germans in the West and 60% in the East were upset at the immigration of foreigners. It is no question as to why German Oi! music began reflecting these problems – resulting in violence against immigration groups. Bands emerged that were explicity National Socialist – who actually praised the Third Reich and Hitler in their lyrics.

Another important group was Bohse Onklez who did not start off originally as a skinhead group. Unlike most punk bands, which have mostly left views, Onklez gained their reputation as a racist band due to their song “Türken Raus” (“Turks Out”). However, many of their songs were about instilling a sense of German pride – which at the time was considered a negative thing due to German associations with Hitler and Nazism. They wished to produce an image of hardness, masculinity, and strength.  It is almost like a far cry to regain a nationalist identity that was lost from a culture built upon pride, then shame.

Although there are organizations within the subculture that are attempting to rid the association of skins with the extreme right, I don’t believe their actions would make a difference. When we hear of skinheads, we automatically associate them with racism and violence. However, an important thing to note here is that the ska genre (which upholds the original skinhead acceptance and love of multiracial music) is still somewhat alive and well, where Oi! music is almost non-existent. It is important to see how, in modern times, the positive has outweighed the negative in its original sense.

With all that said, it is highly unlikely that Rammstein has any ties to skinheads (of any kind) or Oi! music. Analyzing the lyrics of Rammstein, I have not found anything remotely racist, right-winged, National Socialist, or violent. In a future post, I will analyze common misinterpretations of their lyrics and images that were seen as explicitly right. Besides, all of the sources listed in this post mentioned nothing about them – which one should expect if a large amount of people are categorizing them as such. Rammstein is, for all intents and purposes, a heavy metal group that does not even remotely sound like punk music or it’s Oi! derivative. Therefore, one cannot justify Rammstein as a “Nazi-Rock” band based on genre or lyrical content.

Vocalism

I believe that one of the main draws to Rammstein is the attraction of the exotic – in this case, German language use. In the big-picture of the metal scene, the instrumental component of their music lacks individuality. With all-too-familiar drum style, chord progressions, and melodic line, Rammstein would probably sink into sub-par metal band history if not for the distinct vocalizations of lead singer Till Lindemann. The characteristic Lindemann formula includes an almost speech-like singing style, with strong, sometimes harsh, word pronunciation (usually overtly guttural). Kahnke points out that while standard German is present for the majority of their songs, Lindemann’s idiosyncratic use of rolling R’s is dominant. Interesting research by Robert G.H. Burns explores the idea that Lindemann’s vocal style purposely reflects Nazi Era speech and early 20^th century cabaret-style gestic speaking. Burns accurately describes this gestic performance practice of Rammstein songs:

                “The vocal performance of these songs utilizes extended pitch in spoken voice and, as part of the band’s overall stylistic formula, each vocal performance is in two parts. Verses are delivered using half-spoken/half-sung gestic performance and the choruses are, in contrast, often performed as an almost shouted chant”

                Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951) is one of the more notable composers to first insinuate this “gestic” speaking – notably in the lied (song) “Pierrot Lunaire” which featured Sprechstimme (speak voice). This Sprechstimme is what Burns describes as

“…a vocal technique combining speech and melody. This technique requires the singer to accurately maintain the notated rhythm of a melody but, wheras a sung text maintains pitch, Sprechstimme starts on a pitch but then leaves it by falling or rising.”  

Arguably, the practice of Sprechstimme led to the use of gestic performance in socialist cabaret theater. While the Überbrettl Theatre in Berlin was one of the first theaters to showcase Sprechstimme music, the first cabaret performances are believed to have emerged on the Volksbühne, or “People’s Stage”. Interestingly enough, this became an important left-wing tradition – and also quite the stark difference between the “Nazi Era” speech claim.

                Kahnke states that most people can identify the speech patterns of notorious German speakers such as Hitler and Goebbels. The stereotypical patterns are extremely guttural, short, and informative, statement-like sentences. It is argued that Rammstein employs this style intentionally to make them accessible to an international audience since this style showcases the stereotype of German speech. I bet every American can name a few times in their lives where they’ve heard someone say that German “sounds angry”. This can be quite silly to those who have ever studied German language. This association is due to our country (and many others) having such little exposure to real German language and culture. Where do we hear German in our lives besides WWII films and documentaries? What else about Germany do we learn in our high school history classes? Generally, the majority of the young American population leaves the topic of Germany with a sour taste in their mouths. I believe this is where the negative connotations about German language starts and ends. So what do most people think when they first hear a band like Rammstein? Nazism, of course!

In the article by Littlejohn and Putnam, the authors talk about the concept of Ostalgie; the desire by East Germans to return to a time before Wiedervereinigung (German reunification). In relation to the concepts we’re discussing, it can be argued that the vocal style employed is an extension of this. Based on this research, it is possible that Rammstein is trying to emulate a “nostalgic” vocal style that might have been heard in the DDR. However, the article does not go into the music itself, but rather a focus on how this exists in their lyrics – which I will go into for a later post.

I personally do not believe that Rammstein deliberately makes these vocal choices. As a classically trained singer, it is obvious to me (and many others) that Till Lindemann is not a trained vocalist. In most songs, the typical Rammstein vocal formula consists of speech-like verses and half-sung, chest register choruses. It would take a knowledgeable vocalist to consciously incorporate the concept of Sprechstimme AND Nazi speech patterns into their vocal practice. I believe that Lindemann started this simply because he didn’t know how to sing. And in his favor, it works perfectly with this music. Berlinski describes his voice perfectly in a New York Times article as he commanding “a low, powerful bass rarely used in contemporary pop music, untrained but electrifying”. It is quite strange to hear a bass-baritone in pop music, but that’s what makes it so intriguing. I think people are caught off guard hearing this voice type in the first place. Now add German to that sound – guaranteed to scare your typical pop listener! The power of that range really lends to a heavy-metal style (and opera, of course), whereas if a bass was singing in a band like One Direction, things would get a little weird.

Rammstein is not the only German-tongue band to incorporate this formula. Eisbrecher, OOMPH!, and Megaherz are just a couple of bands off the top of my head that also distinctly embrace this vocal style (however, I do think the lead singers of these bands are a bit more vocally solid than Lindemann). These bands mentioned can also be categorized under Neue Deutsch Härte / Industrial Metal genres. It is obvious that this vocal style is typical to the character of the genre. If you are not familiar with these groups, please take a listen below:

Even with all these academic resources, I don’t believe Rammstein is promoting German symbolism through their vocalism – right or left-winged. I feel like all these sources are a classic case of looking too deeply into something which obtains absurd results. Academics and critics alike are most likely trying to find every reason to tie the sextet to National Socialism. I just refuse to even consider that the Lindemann’s vocal style is manipulated by political motivations.