Rammstein: Live at Manchester MEN Arena
I went to see Rammstein last night at the Manchester MEN Arena, possibly one of the most memorable gigs I have ever experienced. At £65 a ticket (of which included my coach travel there and back), it was worth every penny!
Despite most of their songs being in German, I've always been a fan of Rammstein's music and to experience one of their live shows was out of this World. There were flame throwers, lazers, mechanical platforms and fireworks, the apocalyptic set up was amazing!
It was virtually a sell out show with about 20,000 fans filling the arena, (yet despite this they are a band who rarely get much air play on the radio stations?) The set list featured songs from the latest album 'Liebe Ist Für Alle Da' which has been in the top 20 album chart across Europe and the USA.
Watching from the crowd you could feel the heat on your face as fire poured from the stage in pretty much all directions. At one point, frontman Til Lindemann wrestled the keyboard player, Christian "Flake" Lorenz and shoved him into a tin bath, before stepping onto a raising mechanical podium and dousing him with barrels of fireworks. Lorenz then emerged from the bath in a bizarre spangling light up outfit and spent the rest of the set playing his keyboard while walking on a treadmill!
I think one of the most funniest and surprising parts of the gig for me was when the singer Til Lindemann sang the band's slightly pornographic single, "Pussy" whilst sat on a mechanical ten foot cock canon that sprayed paper based fake spunk all over the audience. (Probably one of their more controversial singles, it has a slightly kinky music video that was banned from the mainstream media, the same mainstream media that has no fear of showing the fanny thrusting, tit-flapping dance routines of Girls Aloud on various children's TV shows!)
Despite the whole pyrotechnics thing, I was quite surprised that the music was exceptionally clear, yet not overshadowed. If any other band were to try this then I think their music would be overwhelmed. Only Rammstein can do this well! They put on a show that was dark, funny and surreal. This is a band you have to go and see.
