Rammstein - MutterIt so hard to know who is telling the truth anymore, if anyone!!! With the media sensationalizing everything on one side and the corporates lying to save their own backs perhaps the conclusion is the only truth is your own truth. I'm well aware of the supposed right wing connections of Rammstein and in that respect I stand back and say the usual "Any views expressed are those of the band and not those of the journalist". You'd tend to think that a mainstream record label like Universal wouldn't be involved in right wing politics and this misunderstanding is stated several times in the press release, but you only have to look at the connections between IBM and The Nazi's too see all is not as it seems.
As someone who's limited knowledge of the German language stretches as far as knowing this titles meaning as "Mother" I'll have to leave it up to you readers to translate the lyrics. On a musical level you can't fault it though. Powerful harsh abrasive guitar riffs are the bands trademarks as is a love of the power and emotion often found in classical music. The opener "Hein Herz Brennt" wouldn't feel out of place in one of the Batman films with its haunting string arrangement.
The title track features a gentle finger picked before unleashing the chorus on us. The German dialect perhaps adding to the emotion of the song with is harsh and aggressive tones adding to the general mood of the album. Its perhaps this use of the German language which leaves the band open to attack, while perhaps its our own misunderstanding of other cultural identities which leads to xenophobic attitudes. In times when American and British rock can appear a little stale its great that Europe is producing some powerful and original music whether that be the French dance scene or the German rock scene. As a piece of music it stands head and shoulders above most of the competition and as regards the lyrical content I'll just have to defer judgement until we have a better understanding of the German language
Alex McCann