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Rammstein - Zeit review



Reviewer:
6.5

287 users:
7.49
Band: Rammstein
Album: Zeit
Release date: April 2022


01. Armee Der Tristen
02. Zeit
03. Schwarz
04. Giftig
05. Zick Zack
06. OK
07. Meine Tränen
08. Angst
09. Dicke Titten
10. Lügen
11. Adieu

Time can provide many things. It can provide perspective, maturity, and wisdom. It can also show signs of deterioration.

Out of all the bands that I listened to when I was first introduced to metal, Rammstein is the only one I love with as much fervor as I did back then. Their unique image, thought-provoking lyrics and hard-hitting music deliver a final product that to me feels serious while also being highly entertaining. A band that can mix wild fun with dark sophistication. I was both scared and excited when the untitled album from 2019 was released. It had been a decade since Liebe Ist Für Alle Da came out. A lot of things can change in that time. I know my tastes did. Fortunately, 2019’s release saw the band with plenty of rejuvenating energy. Rammstein felt relevant again. I was excited for a band I treasure so much.

So you can only imagine my discomfort after having such a hard time appreciating Zeit. Rammstein’s eight album is a product of the COVID-19 pandemic, as the band was forced to postpone their tour due to the lockdowns. I’m glad their creative juices were developing and needed an outlet but maybe an unplanned album is not the right course of action for them. I can’t properly explain what I expected from this album because I always appreciated Rammstein’s ability to create all kinds of vibes through their diverse songwriting. So maybe I should go through the different faces of the band and why their last album struggles with each facelift.

The hard-hitting Rammstein? You’ll find that there are a lot of slow-passages and ballads in this album. This gives Zeit a sense of identity though, as I can’t recall the band ever sounding this consistently attuned to calmer tunes that draw plenty of inspiration from genres like goth rock. That being said, “Zick Zack” and “Angst” pack plenty of firepower and catchiness along with a lyrical content worth checking out. Unfortunately the other pair of punchy tracks, “Giftig” and “OK”, don’t feel nearly as inspired and their choruses verge on the annoying, which leads me to another facet of the band:

The witty Rammstein? I honestly feel the band's lyrics have dropped in quality. Even their most cheeky tracks like “Sex” or “Pussy” have more poetry and subtlety in them than “OK” and “Dicke Titten”. And worst of all: Both the songs and the lyrics are simply not funny. They are too immature for an otherwise excellent writer like Till Lindemann. “Lügen” is a surprising highlight though; it is fitting that a track about a liar sees Mr. Lindemann using auto-tune to great results.

The anthemic Rammstein? Well, the band never had a big problem here. If there is one thing Rammstein can always do well, it is to create a handful of songs that are perfect for a live setting. Opener “Armee Der Tristen” is eerie and bleak, with a marching pace that keeps you hooked in similar manner to “Reise, Reise”. I’m sure the ballads “Adieu” and the title track will also gain more power when played live, but overall the album doesn’t seem to provide many tracks that invigorate Rammstein’s concert legacy.

The emotional Rammstein? With an album so filled with ballads and mid-tempo songs, it is striking how little connection I feel with many of the songs. Maybe they will mature with time, but as of now, “Meine Tränen” is the only track for which I can properly submerge in dark, melancholic waters. The gothic metal style of that track carries a sound and lyrical content very similar to “Mutter”.

For each track in Zeit I find compelling, I seem to find at least one I can’t fully engage in. I’m glad Rammstein felt the creative call in the midst of a bad situation, but perhaps Zeit needed another lockdown before release.


Rating breakdown
Performance: 8
Songwriting: 6
Originality: 6
Production: 8





Written on 18.06.2022 by A lazy reviewer but he is so cute you'd forgive him for it.


Comments

Comments: 20   Visited by: 268 users
19.06.2022 - 03:00
24emd
Theory Snob
Never been a big fan, and this one didn't change anything for me.
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"I am too stupid to be human, and I lack common sense." - Proverbs 30:2
"Music? Well, it's just entertainment, folks!" - Devin Townsend

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19.06.2022 - 05:45
Rating: 7
sbgmetal

I enjoyed the goth aspect they infused with their music this time around but i thought the auto tune part sounded horrible
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19.06.2022 - 07:00
Rating: 6
The Entity

Some good tracks on this album, flake really shines on this one. But having the suspensful opener go into a ballad that then goes into another ballad kills the album before it barly starts. Horrible track-listing (I have to listen to my own schuffle to make it listenable). Not as bad as Rosenrot but among their weakest for sure.
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https://enigmaticalofficial.bandcamp.com/
Industrial / Cosmic Black Metal
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19.06.2022 - 11:19
Fallen Ghost
Craft Beer Geek
Could not disagree more I think, this may be in the top 3 of their discography in my opinion! Love this album
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19.06.2022 - 12:48
Bad English
Tage Westerlund
I have a dicka you have a pussy, so what's the problem let's do it quick.
This band should make music videos, to me I never liked any album from them
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Life is to short for LOVE, there is many great things to do online !!!

Stormtroopers of Death - ''Speak English or Die''
apos;'
[image]
I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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19.06.2022 - 12:49
Rating: 6
X-Ray Rod
Skandino
I forgot to mention the videos (but I don't see them as a part of the album). They are, as usual, excellent.

Written by The Entity on 19.06.2022 at 07:00

Some good tracks on this album, flake really shines on this one. But having the suspensful opener go into a ballad that then goes into another ballad kills the album before it barly starts. Horrible track-listing (I have to listen to my own schuffle to make it listenable). Not as bad as Rosenrot but among their weakest for sure.


I must be the only fellow who thinks Rosenrot is over-hated. Only song that sucks is Te Quiero Puta and a few of them are boring but it has far better singles than Zeit.

The flow of this album is pretty odd, that is true.
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Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29
Like you could kiss my ass
Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
Rod, let me love you.
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19.06.2022 - 15:21
Desha
delicious dish
I generally try to take Rammstein in very small bursts because their verse-chorus-verse structure can become SUPER repetitive with how Till sings them all the same. Also I hate tehir sex humor stuff and they're really edgy. This to me is less memorable than their last one and doesn't live up to the early material either. But I wasn't expecting anything else anyways.

Written by Bad English on 19.06.2022 at 12:48

This band should make music videos, to me I never liked any album from them

I do like their albums but I can agree that their music videos are probably the best part about them. They're also really great on this one from what I've seen.
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You are the hammer, I am the nail
building a house in the fire on the hill
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19.06.2022 - 23:02
Rating: 8
fenchik

Much Better than the previous one (who was shit)..But still far from "Sehnsucht"!! Angst and Lugen are the best song!! 7.5/10
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20.06.2022 - 10:30
JokeCoeur

Even their most cheeky tracks like “Sex” or “Pussy” have more poetry and subtlety in them than “OK” and “Dicke Titten”.
More subtlety you said?
OK is #6
Dicke Titten is #9
🙄
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20.06.2022 - 10:33
JokeCoeur

Written by Fallen Ghost on 19.06.2022 at 11:19

Could not disagree more I think, this may be in the top 3 of their discography in my opinion! Love this album

If it's not their final album I hope to god they would let Flake incorporate a real piano again like he did with the outro in Schwarz which is absolutely fantastic!!!
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21.06.2022 - 00:02
Metal Hazz \m/

Enjoyable review

Similarly, expectations were high having enjoyed the untitled record and upon first listen, I found this one quite disappointing. However, patience is required and rewarded as after several further spins on a decent sound system at high volume, I was hooked. I started to list the best tracks before realising it is most of them in fairness - Zick Zack, Angst and Adieu are particularly strong.

In terms of negatives, the drumming is overly basic and repetitive at times. Christoph has really hit the brakes since Liebe so I wonder if this is his own decision or the band as a whole? Track ordering is questionable, as already mentioned. The weakest tracks are Zeit and OK. Zeit starts promisingly enough but the second half falls flat with uninspiring guitar and drum work. OK suffers from an annoying chorus. Finally, whoever allowed the brass band to ring out over the cracking main riff on the second half of Dicke Titten needs shooting

To anyone who dismissed this album after the first listen, keep persevering...

For those of us who have enjoyed this one, the question is whether it is their last? I hope not!
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21.06.2022 - 12:13
heavyriffs
Account deleted
Quite a good record.
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27.06.2022 - 16:50
Rating: 7
metalbrat

I feel sorry for you when you say that Rammstein waz inspiring you when you were inspired to metal!!!!....oh. God....and you were a fan of their lyrics??? !!!!....I really dont know when you were born but i was in 90s and the only song of Rammstein which inspired any kind of metal into us was Mutter.... Never was a great fan but for whatever music they churned out in 90s, I believe they are still doing in this albim. Good one compared to the albums after mutter came out
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In the beginning I was made of clay. Then I bit the apple and they changed me to metal 🤘
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27.06.2022 - 18:29
Zap
Guest
Nice review Rod. I only listened to the album once but can safely agree with your points. I hope they play the good tracks live and leave the stuff like Dicke Titten out of the setlist.
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27.06.2022 - 20:42
Rating: 6
X-Ray Rod
Skandino
Written by Zap on 27.06.2022 at 18:29

Nice review Rod. I only listened to the album once but can safely agree with your points. I hope they play the good tracks live and leave the stuff like Dicke Titten out of the setlist.


I read it fast and my mind was like ”leave the Dick out of the setlist”.
That works too.
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Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29
Like you could kiss my ass
Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
Rod, let me love you.
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27.06.2022 - 20:48
Rating: 6
X-Ray Rod
Skandino
Written by metalbrat on 27.06.2022 at 16:50

I feel sorry for you when you say that Rammstein waz inspiring you when you were inspired to metal!!!!....oh. God....and you were a fan of their lyrics??? !!!!....I really dont know when you were born but i was in 90s and the only song of Rammstein which inspired any kind of metal into us was Mutter.... Never was a great fan but for whatever music they churned out in 90s, I believe they are still doing in this albim. Good one compared to the albums after mutter came out


I was Also born in the early 90’s. And yes, many of their lyrics are still excellent to this day. On this one They were not as good.
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Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29
Like you could kiss my ass
Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
Rod, let me love you.
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28.06.2022 - 15:41
Rating: 7
metalbrat

Thanks for your comment even though i disagree with you on their lyrics part.
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In the beginning I was made of clay. Then I bit the apple and they changed me to metal 🤘
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08.06.2023 - 12:31
corrupt
With a lowercase c
Written by X-Ray Rod on 27.06.2022 at 20:42
I read it fast and my mind was like ”leave the Dick out of the setlist”.
That works too.

Apparently in more ways than we knew at the time.
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08.06.2023 - 12:34
Rating: 6
X-Ray Rod
Skandino
Written by corrupt on 08.06.2023 at 12:31

Written by X-Ray Rod on 27.06.2022 at 20:42
I read it fast and my mind was like ”leave the Dick out of the setlist”.
That works too.

Apparently in more ways than we knew at the time.



You are allowed to blame me for this prophecy turned reality. Damn it.
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Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29
Like you could kiss my ass
Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
Rod, let me love you.
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08.06.2023 - 14:30
Redel

Written by X-Ray Rod on 08.06.2023 at 12:34

You are allowed to blame me for this prophecy turned reality. Damn it.

Better think twice before saying that, there are some charges accumulating.
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