10 years is a long time in anyone’s book but in musical terms it can be a whole career, or in the case of some X Factor winners a career can pass in 10 minutes. The fact that Rammstein have gone 10 years without producing a new album but have continued to fill stadiums the world over year after year is testament to their excellent back catalogue and incendiary live shows. This album has a lot to prove then, is it worth the 10 year wait?

Opening track ‘Deutschland’ quickly confirms that the band have not forgotten how to write a brutal but catchy song with a menacing edge. Till Lindemann’s  unnerving vocal delivery is the key to the band’s sound, deep with an air of malevolence that suits the industrial metal backing perfectly.

The catchy ‘Radio’ follows before the band enter full attack mode on ‘Zeig Dich’ with a huge riff and thunderous drumming. ‘Auslander’ is another catchy, almost dance worthy track before ‘Sex’ plunges us into a seedy world with Lindemann leading the way down towards the red light.

‘Puppe’ is possibly the most unhinged track on the album with a manic delivery on the chorus, this should be a monster of a track in a live setting. The other song which will prove to be a show stopper in a live setting is ‘Diamant’, a slow, gentle number that will have the lighters, or mobile phones more likely, held aloft. ‘Tattoo’ is another storming track driven along by the dual guitars of Richard Z Kruspe and Paul Landers and the epic ‘Hallomann’ rounds things off in fine fashion.

It may have taken years to come to light, but this album was well worth the wait. Rammstein are a unique band that blend the crushingly heavy with the lilting and melodic seamlessly. With stadium tours already planned and sold out well in advance, the band’s popularity shows no signs of waning and this album just reaffirms their position as the most explosive band in metal. *****

Review by Dave Wilson