Intelligent industrial metal German band Rammstein's album "Reise, Reise" has become one of my favorite listens. Their strong chords, striking imagery and wry humor combine to create powerful images in the mind.

The songs have been excellently translated over at the Rammstein fan site herzleid.com. These translations are used in the notes that follow. (Ich verstehe Deutsch, aber mein Deutsch ist nicht gut, dass genug, gute Übersetzungen von diesen Liedern zu versorgen)

The first song, "Reise, Reise" deals with a battle of the sea, between seamen, fishes and humans - a call to arms.

Even on the waves there is fighting
Where fish and flesh are woven into sea
One stabs the lance while in the army
Another throws it into the ocean

"Mein Tell", or "my part" is a hard-driving metal thrasher with an unusual theme, a willing human victim to a butcher - based on the real life case of Jurgen Brandes, who was willingly slaughtered by Armin Meiwes. The song was used in "Resident Evil 2:Apocalypse"

Today I will meet a gentleman
He likes me so much he could eat me up
Soft parts and even hard ones
are on the menu

The song "Dalai Lama" is replete with mystical meaning. Nominally, it is about a little boy on an airplane who is feeling afraid, and about the fear of flying. The current Dalai Lama is himself afraid of flying. The song also draws on the rich tradition of lieder such as Schubert's "Erlkonig" based on Goethe's poem "Der Erlkonig"(The Erl King) about a little child haunted by a sinister being, an omen of death - this tale itself is as old as the Jewish tale of Lilith, and later medieval tales of the Elf King.

Onwards, onwards into destruction
We must live until we die
Humans don't belong in the sky
So the lord in Heaven calls
his sons to the wind
Bring me this human child

The next song "Keine Lust" or "Don't Feel Like It" is about the extinguishing of desire, of all forms, turning the individual into a listless, jaded, soul. A typical feeling in such a state is the inability to experience sexual desire, captured in this song as well.

I don't feel like not hating myself
Don't feel like touching myself
I would feel like masturbating
Don't feel like trying it
I would feel like getting undressed
Don't feel like seeing myself naked
...I'll just keep lying here
and I'll count the flies again
I listlessly touch myself
and notice I've been frigid for a long time already
So frigid, I'm cold . . .

The song "Los" or "Less" is a social protest song giving voice to the nameless, speechless, powerless, wordless - a catchy rhythm and beat permeates this song, and the tempo is pretty good too.

We were nameless
We have a name
We were wordless
The words came
Still we are
a little songless
Yet we're not toneless
You do hear it
We aren't flawless
Just a bit anchorless
You will become soundless
You'll never get rid of us