Rammstein

Even after being criticized for its violent onstage antics, German industrial-metal band Rammstein has managed to ignore the criticism and put together its third studio album, Mutter. \nMutter solidifies Rammstein's place as a legitimate force in the world of industrial metal. The opening track, "Mein Herz Brennt" (My Heart Burns), begins with orchestrated strings melded into singer Till Lindeman's whispers, but guitars and bass take over in a galloping beat worthy of the dance floor. \nLindeman's deep voice fills with emotion as he sings (but doesn't scream) the song's chorus, creating a dramatic feel. This is a clear departure from 1998's guitar-driven onslaught Sehnsucht.\nFamous for its fire-filled live show and spurred by the unlikely success of "Du Hasst," Rammstein managed success as Sehnsucht went gold in the United States alone. \nOn Mutter, the band's guitarists continue to play fluently, often creating pulsating rhythms at points and leaving the drums and bass to carry other tunes, creating balance on the album. Clearly an improvement from other albums where keyboards, sound effects and even vocals are deafened by the guitars.\nKeyboardist Christian "Flake" Lorenz proves to be a key player, adding a video-game style melody to "Ich Will" (I Want) and creating a dramatically gothic atmosphere in "Sonne" (Sun) by sampling an eerie vocal line. \nLindeman rarely screams or growls, instead choosing a mysterious whisper or emotion-filled vocals fit for a Broadway play. Lindeman shows his age, but the vocals are heartfelt and create a sense of longing or sadness rather then the angry rage heard in much of today's music.\nMutter contains pop-oriented song structures complete with sing-along choruses, in German of course. The one downfall will be the title track, which remains strong but contains a melody line in the chorus that is similar to Metallica's "Unforgiven." "Links 2 3 4" and "Feuer frei!" remain true to traditional Rammstein format and should go over well live despite their rather simple song structures. \nMutter is a solid album that is both heavy and melodic and one that modern rock radio could easily pick up. It might not sell well because of the German lyrics, but its versatility puts it up with Nine Inch Nails' The Downward Spiral and is easily one of the better rock albums released this year.