#the Till's effect lol : hysterical scream of pleasure from girls’ throats

[herrlindemann]

BRAVO - 09 October 1997

“Pay attention, we're bringing a crazy new gag to the show: Today I'm taking revenge for all the kicks and humiliations I had to take from Till!” key man Flake tells me shortly before the start of the Rammstein tour premiere in Emden. In the 52nd minute of the new ‘Sehnsucht’ show, Flake strikes: During 'Bück dich' all the lights on the stage in the North Sea Hall suddenly go out. While a wild drum solo sweeps out of the speaker towers, a two meter high jet of flame blazes up in the middle of the hall. Totally amazed, the 5,000 fans stare at a kind of mobile boxing ring that is being carried to the stage on the shoulders of six roadies over the banging heads. On the platform: Flake and Till, who is kneeling on all fours. Flames blaze up on his back. Grinning wickedly, Flake begins to grill sausages on Till's burning back and then hands them out to the fans in a macabre barbecue that has the crowd cheering and whistling.

The barbecue is a highlight of Rammstein's new 100-minute show. On their ‘Sehnsucht’ tour, which runs until 23.10. thundering through 22 German cities, it says 'Feuer frei' from the first to the last song. With bomb explosions ten seconds apart, Paul, Richard, Olli, Flake and Schneider appear on stage one after the other. Till is the last to shoot out of the ground in a column of smoke. In his pebbled rubber jacket, with silver sashes and belts, he looks like a cross between a Michelin man and a 'Star Wars' warrior. To Schneider's thundering drumbeat and the brute guitar chords of Richard and Paul, the frontman roars the first verse of 'Spiel mit mir' into the microphone in his martial staccato style. During the chorus, Schneider's bass drum explodes in a huge barrage of fire.

During ‘Bestrafe mich’, a hysterical scream of pleasure from girls’ throats rang through the hall as Till, bathed in sweat, ripped off his rubber armor. Underneath, the Rammstein sex symbol wears a white torero outfit with tight knee-breeches, tailored by Schneider's sister Konstanze. The tight jacket falls when Till mercilessly whips himself during the chorus.

With ‘Du hast’ the whole hall roars the “Nein!” in the chorus as if from one mouth. Flames dart along the front light truss, detonating in a glistening shower of sparks that envelops the entire stage for a few seconds. The super hard 'Eifersucht’ triggers a veritable volcanic eruption. Huge fireballs rise up everywhere on the stage, the heat waves of which can be felt in every corner of the hall. During 'Weißes Fleisch', fire of devil Till shoots meter-long sparks from nozzles on both hands at his band buddies and the fans in the front rows. The biggest Rammstein hit to date, 'Engel', finally transforms the scene into an inferno of hell: smoke billows in thick columns towards the lighting system, streams of lava made of flame powder pour over the stage, while 'Cyborg' Till emits a piercing, bright red beam from laser glasses eyes the fans. For the finale, things get dicey again for the fans: during “Du riechst so gut”, the Rammstein frontman fires off a rocket with a burning giant bow, which explodes a fraction of a second later on the hall ceiling. A shower of sparks trickles down on the amazed fans, who immediately duck for cover. Then it suddenly gets dark — the fire magic is over. The fans are slowly leaving the hall, completely dazed...