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To the sun, to freedom! Rammstein & Apocalyptica on a grand voyage

The pyro-men from over the Spree travelled across Europe with their current album ‘Reise, Reise’ for four months altogether and during innumerable appearances an estimated half a million international fans experienced their characteristic Industrial-metal wanderlust. We met Rammstein on Tour at one of their few German gigs, along with the Finnish chainsaw cellist of Apocalyptica, together with Rammstein guitarist Paul Landers and Apocalyptica-Mastermind Eicca Toppinen we pondered over botched effects, glowing boots and wild after show parties.

Was it hard to get back into tour-mode again?
Eicca: Absolutely not! We’ve done so many appearances that we feel completely at home when we enter the bus and go on tour! On Tour we are truly a little family. On longer tours usually there’s a kind of adjustment to the gig-coma when you briefly feel completely drained before the show. But with Rammstein this does not happen so much.
Paul: We didn’t think so beforehand but funnily enough this tour proved the easiest of all as it turned out! It is still a moderately uphill tour for us: In former times it was quite the exception to play before 10,000 people, today we do this all the time worldwide! It’s quite unbelievable, in Finland of 10.000 people before resounds “Reise, Reise” "sing to hear. Moreover, after twelve years we still have the good luck to all like each other co-operate well together. For me this is the first tour, which was really fun for me! Previously one often asked oneself: What am I doing here? Today we are in Paris, New York, Tokyo - cool!

How long do the preparations last for such an extravagantly mammoth production?
Eicca: We play scarcely 40 minutes, so this time there weren’t any really substantial preparations, before the tour we rehearsed for scarcely a week. Actually we regard the shows as a kind warm up for our Headline tour. It’s really quite amusing: As a warm up exercise we play before 10,000 people each night with Rammstein as a rehearsal for our own tour where we play in front of 2,000 people. What band can say that? We have already played in front of over 200,000 people - normally we would have to do approximately 150 club shows for that number! We have probably never been as well prepared for a tour as for the upcoming one. Our stage set is Spartan with flag stands and something rather similar to large thrones; however it fits well with the atmosphere of our gigs!
Paul: In principle the preparation time is always too short for us. Everything happens too hastily and frantically. In the meantime, we know that things slowly wear thin but we also don’t have the ambition to reinvent ourselves completely again for each tour. We noticed that we don’t have to change the respective special effects for a song at all if the public thinks it’s good. Constructing a show is very difficult and needs something like military tactics to do it. The ground troops are there already, the cavalry are around on the left and if all are slaughtered, we come back on our camels... Over the years there’s been no match to our current crew - so naturally the preparation time is drastically reduced. In addition we also still rehearse during the first shows, improving and modifying.

Are there variations in the set as a prevention against eventual boredom?
Paul: Not in any circumstances. We don’t like changes at all! We do not have any support for sound checks and samples – as that annoys us too much. Today, for example, we wanted to change only one song in the set – that got Till into a rage. Some of us would love to play a new set everyday; others always want to do the same. Actually, the band is quite content, if the rails are laid correctly then you simply drive: Each day with an indifferent expression, like in a play. With Shakespeare the actors sometimes speak louder, sometimes more quietly but every day they speak the same lines, go over the stage, get themselves a glass wine. We are the same too.

That actually contradicts the universal picture of a rock band!
Paul: We are not a rock band! We are a kind of circus! Actually we’re like Gwar with order. I think the people expect it to be that way. Again and again we’ve looked to improvise, however we want everything to have continuity always, a firm timetable and away we go! For us, the variations are actually the city and then the party after the show.

Is it hard to play in front of Rammstein fans?
Eicca: It presented itself more as a difficulty before we began but in reality it is not actually that hard. In Germany to a large extent, the people have already heard of Apocalyptica but in England or France hardly anyone knows us. But by the third song everywhere all the people are with us!

Technical Equipment Rammstein:
6 musicians
600,000 Watts Lighting system
112.000 Watts Sound system
Approx.10 km cable
40 kilos Pyro
20 kilos of confetti
200 kilos of CO2
35 tons steel (structure of stage)
5 tons aluminium (stage set)
13 Trucks
13 Truckers
45 crew members
4 bus drivers
4 additional firemen

On 28.02. “Keine Lust" the fourth single from the "Reise, Reise” collection was released!
Paul: Admittedly the single releases have been somewhat hasty, however it is more for logistical reasons that anything else. Actually, the record company suggested we make "Moskau" the next single but we had no desire*. (*play on the title of the song: ‘Keine Lust’ = ‘No Desire’) We decided on "Keine Lust" because "Amerika" was already very bombastic and then came "Ohne Dich" - which was really okay for Christmas actually, everyone could cry – however now we wanted to do something fresher again.

Apocalyptica recruited as the support band, a rather unusual choice: Teutonic battle material versus Finnish seated minimalism...
Paul: They are a band, who are simply good, but do not necessarily have large battle material. It grabs me immediately when I see Apocalyptica playing live – even if they just sit there. As far as I’m concerned they could eat bread rolls too. Also the air is electric when they play, and their drummer is truly a one off! Beforehand I was sceptical as to how they would rearrange "Bittersweet", but live, I didn’t miss the two singers. Faultless!

What differences or things in common relationship-wise are there between Rammstein and Apocalyptica?
Paul: The largest difference is probably that Apocalyptica do not have singer. In order to have major success, usually one must have an established singer - however then Apocalyptica wouldn’t be the same any more. It is very difficulty for them, but they are the ideal support band: Taking nothing away from them, they go down well with the audiences and they don’t get on our nerves! As the main band you are under a lot of pressure while the support band is there in your place and you must remain backstage listening to the trash and din from the direction of the stage – that really gets on your nerves in the long run! A good support band you can watch happily and you can be inspired. The last time had I such a feeling was with ‘Within Temptation’ some years ago.
Eicca: I think, as far as the song writing goes, we have a lot of things in common! On our "Reflections" album there’s a song "Heat" – it was very much inspired by different Rammstein songs, for example “Sonne"!

What do you learn from each other on tour together? Do you pick anything up from each other?
Eicca: Their whole production is simply the best! However I must also say that the more we see the Rammstein shows, the more we come to the conclusion that this amount of special effects would not be for us. For us it is more important to put the focus on our strengths - the music and the playing! Although naturally all the fireworks are to be highly regarded, we do not need them for our appearances. If we used such a thing then we’d do it in a Spinal Tap manner: Rockets from the cello or exploding cellos!
Paul: Possibly something can always be picked up from each of the bands in existence! Therefore I am always pleased when we play festivals: Take Pearl Jam for example, I heard the loudest shouting and cheering of all when just before the gig the hall lights went out briefly! Then suddenly there were a few people in shirts and Jeans on the stage, only small lightshow and the people were so chilled out! We always invest enormous sums of money on our shows and these people simply stood there and the crowd was so enthusiastic... It was very important for me to see that you can still drive people insane with simple means.

What impresses you most at Rammstein shows?
Eicca: The music impresses the most! I was always a huge fan, just as my two sons are today!

In 2003 Flake initiated the “Mein Herz brennt” classical project. Could you conceive of Rammstein appearing with a big classical orchestra?
Paul: No. You would become old and languid standing on stage with an orchestra and then there’s the wind instruments, background singers and a bongo player. I would be happy to be saved from all this! It's all bad enough already...

You mean: Pyrotechnically there are deplorable accidents on the tour?
Paul: Nothing too bad. When Till swings his bow in “Du reichst so gut" the sparks always fall into my boots and they are still glowing in the shoes. When Till stands under the spark shower in "Ohne Dich" then he suffers a lot. He already has holes burned into his back. Our Pyro people hang the equipment lower all the time in order to annoy him! Normal people could bear no more than two seconds under it but Till sees it rather as sporting challenge...

How many effects do you consider to be enough? Afterall, explosions, smoke and mortars go off from tubes with nearly every song?
Paul: Naturally the effects distract a lot from the music and not all of it is necessary but when once we’d started, it is very hard to stop! We try not to build too many effects into the show - actually we wanted to play the show completely without it – or not so much.

For some of the shows you have performed the song “Ohne Dich” with Rammstein as special guests - do you have plans to work with Till Lindemann?
Eicca: For two of the German Gigs unfortunately I had to cancel my appearance as I was in bed with a high fever and I could hardly make it through our own set. It would be really fantastic to do a song with Till on our next album.

Who gets the more beautiful Groupies after the show?
Paul: Truthfully I do not pay much attention to that! Actually I always go to bed early.
Eicca: I must say that many more girls come to our concerts than to those of Rammstein! However we are not interested any longer in Groupies - we are all old and married men! The after show parties are always very, very bad! But seriously: It is really cool to chat and drink a beer with the Rammstein guys after the shows!

Technical Equipment Apocalyptica:
4 Cellists
1 Drummer
4 Seats
4 Risers
1 Drum Riser
1 Drummer
3 cellos
1 Light Technician
1 Tour manager
1 Sound Technician
1 Nightliner
1 bus driver


© 2005 Sue Lindemann