Rammstein's 10 Biggest Controversies

3. Banned In Germany

Under the scrupulous gaze of Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährdende Medien (or “the Federal Department for Media Harmful to Young Persons”), Rammstein saw their sixth record Liebe ist für alle da added to “the Index”: a record of media that was not fit for the general public to consume.

Subsequently, it was removed from store-shelves for violent sexual texts and imagery. One image in particular on the album’s unfolding sleeve that featured a nude woman straddling guitarist Richard Kruspe’s knee as he raised his hand did the band no favours. But it was the highly sexual lyrics for Pussy and Ich tu dir weh that proved to be a step too far.

In an interview, keyboard Christian Lorenz regretted the lack of appreciation for irony from the board who had made the decision and, when a reworked version of the album returned to high streets a month later, Rammstein made the most firmly Rammstein tongue-in-cheek move possible and changed the tracklisting: placing a horizontal strike through the title Ich tu dir weh, adding that it had been removed because of censorship.

In the ensuing months, the band continued to play the song live albeit instrumentally until performances of the song in any fashion were banned, even when it did not include the extreme BDSM-centric lyrics that caused the upset in the first place. During the spring and summer of 2010, the album found itself freed from its Index prison and Ich tu dir weh became a cornerstone of the Rammstein live setlist.

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Coming from a content creation background that now spans over two decades, Psy cut her teeth on personal video production and community radio. Originally joining the team as a writer and presenter, she added video editing duties to her responsibilities over time and became the longest-standing editor of the irreverent gaming show Tues Your Own Adventure. Psy has worked on many previews and reviews, long-form editorials (either her own, or supporting as an editor), as a frequent quizmaster and more. Praised for the two-pronged attack of her hard work ethic and light-hearted editing style, Psy is otherwise known as a font of retro video game knowledge which has caused her to rack up many quiz wins. Outside of WhatCulture, Psy runs First Aid Spray Podcast - a long-running channel that focuses on Resident Evil in all of it's forms. You can follow her on BlueSky at http://psywhite.bsky.social and Instagram at http://instagram.com/therealpsywhite