Features
Say Hello To Their Little Friends
As physical sales of recorded music continue to spiral down the drain, bands have been forced to find creative ways to deliver unique products and packaging that downloading can’t match. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that German metal maestros Rammstein have come up with one that’s going to be really, really hard to top. (Warning! This story contains a photo that’s probably NSFW and definitely not appropriate for children.)
I’ll get to Rammstein’s special package (or maybe I should say packages?) in a moment, but first a little background.
The band has already generated a considerable amount of attention and controversy this year with the release of studio album No. 6 Liebe Ist für Alle Da and its lead single, “Pussy.”
In a music video first, the clip for “Pussy” features Rammstein and female porn stars in graphic sex scenes, with body doubles standing in for the band’s – ahem – “members” in the penetration shots.
And earlier this month, Germany’s Office for the Examination of Media Harmful to Young People (real sticklers for clarity in naming, those Germans) ruled that Liebe Ist is “harmful” to children because of its “provocative art, lyrics and song titles.”
The ruling hardly comes as a surprise considering the uncensored version of the album’s cover features a painting of band members at a dinner party where the main course is the body of a naked woman.
The government has also forbidden the band to perform a track from the new album, “Ich tu dir weh” (loosely translated: “I Do You Pain”) in concert.
Despite the fact that Switzerland and Australia quickly followed Germany’s lead in restricting sales of Liebe Ist für Alle Da, the album climbed to the No. 2 spot on European sales charts.
As outrageous as all of this might be, it pales in comparison to what the band has dreamed up for a deluxe collectors’ package of Liebe Ist für Alle Da.
Remember the clip for “Pussy”? Well fans who’d like to have a souvenir from the video can do just that by getting their hands on the ultra-limited edition box set, which includes the album, a pair of handcuffs, a bottle of lube and six pink latex sex toys modeled from the band’s actual equipment (and I don’t mean guitars), all tucked away neatly in a custom metal flight case.
The number of jokes I could – ahem – insert here boggles the mind, so I’ll leave that up to you, dear readers, and content myself with showing you a picture of Rammstein’s crowning achievement in all of its glory.
Photo: rammstein-deluxe.com
The Rammstein box set – Liebe Ist Für Alle Da.
While the deluxe package was initially planned for release only in Europe, the band has just announced that it will now be available in the U.S. for the low, low price of $250 through Rammstein-Deluxe.com.
Now I’m just wondering which American band is going to take up this challenge. Where’s Cynthia Plaster Caster when you need her?