I’m one of those people who like sort of metalish music, and a few weeks ago I got to see my favourite band of all time, namely Rammstein. I’ve liked this band since I was 13-14 years old, and this was the second time I’ve seen them live. It was EPIC! They were playing in several cities in England, and so I took the train to Newcastle as it was the closest option for me. I also happen to have a friend who studies there, which made it even more convenient, not to mention nice to see her again. I got an early train on purpose so I could spend the day with her, which was great.
As soon as I got on the train I saw some other people who were going to the same concert. How did I know? They were wearing Rammstein t-shirts of course, or a t-shirt of another similar band. When we were walking around in Newcastle I saw more and more (by that time I was one of them myself, having changed into one of my Rammstein t-shirts at my friend’s place) wandering the street. It’s a really cool feeling, seeing so many people dressed in a similar way for a day, just because you are all going to the same event. It feels like you’re all a part of an extended family, even if you have no clue who anyone else is. It feels like you’re not the only person who is different than “normal” people. I like it, and I like being different.
We went to Metro Arena where the gig was quite early, because really, that’s what all real fans do. Where I bought another t-shirt, because that’s what real fans do as well…and I also really like the designs. Eventually the warm-up band started, a Scandinavian (I think) band called Deathstar, which I’ve never heard about, but they were actually pretty decent. And then…they came on stage.
Rammstein is a German band and almost all their songs are in German, so I mostly have no idea what they actually sing about as I don’t speak German, but I don’t really care as I like the music anyway (and I bet it’s more interesting lyrics than, say, all mainstream music). Still, I sing along basically all the time, as I know how all the lyrics sound, even if I can’t pronounce it all or know what I’m saying.
I won’t say much about when they actually played, as it’s something you have to experience to understand, words just can’t convey how it was. Or at least I can’t, with my second-language English. What I will say though, is that they are great, and they do it so, so well. If I could I would have followed their tour and seen them several times in a row, as they played in several other cities in England around the same time as I saw them in Newcastle, but unfortunately there is this thing called university classes and money which are sort of necessary.
This Rammstein concert and the one I was at two years ago when I saw them for the first time are the best gigs I’ve ever been to, ever.Partly because the music is fantastic and I know and really like all the lyrics which makes everything more fun and partly because they do it so well. They don’t just stand there looking bored and singing half-heartedly, they make a show of it and acts like they actually care about making it worthwhile for people to come see them.They don’t do silly, stupid things on stage just to get attention, but awesome things which fits really well with the music and just makes the whole experience better. Such as in the picture here where they actually had this bridge coming down from the ceiling and walking across it to get to the stage instead of doing the normal boring thing of entering through the back of the stage, and also used it several other times during the gig. I mean, come on, a bridge, coming down from the celing, being just over our heads. Or like in the other picture here, during the song “Engel”, which means angel (no shit sherlock), when he’s wearing those cool wings. Maybe it’s just me being a bit of a pyromaniac, but it’s just awesome with flames used in ways like that.
It’s hard to describe in words how great it really was, especially for someone who hasn’t experienced a concert with this kind of music, or someone who doesn’t like it to understand. It’s incredible, with the music, the show, the flames, the atmosphere, the occasional mosh pits, the people, everyone (including me) singing along whatever parts of the lyrics we could pronounce and just moving with the music…it was just fantastic, and I’m really looking forward to whenever I can get to see them again. Hopefully it won’t be too long.
What music do you like?
I will travel the world 