Press: Rammstein Chat with Paul

Transcribed by Jeremy Williams
Taken from Rammstein.com chat
October 26 , 2005

Mod: Hello to you all. Thanks for coming out. Paul will be here in just a few minutes. And then we're going to get started.
Paul: Let's go!
niti: +++
Mod: Sorry, there was a technical problem. But the chat will start soon.
niti: +++

atomrt: how do you chose the sounds for each song because all of them fit perfectly?
Paul: Thanks a lot! Sometimes that works out well, sometimes not so well.+++

maria: Your album covers have always sparked a lot of controversy. Which cover is your favourite and why?
Paul: The cover for Sehnsucht was the most dramatic in my opinion.+++

Benzramm: What was coming out of the fake penis during the live act "Bück Dich"?
Paul: That was water with Ouzo to make it milky.+++

Beurgueur: Good evening, Have you ever thought to write a metal-opera based on rammstein’ story?
Paul: Hopefully not. We have enough theater elements already.+++

MafiUndomiel: I was at River Plate Stadium in Argentina, 1999, when you toured with KISS. You did almost surpassed KISS music and show with your impact, and many people was really impressed. I still remember the silence during Du Hast, as Till was singing the refrain. What do you remember of Argentina, of this show?
Paul: Yeah, that was unbelievable. It's a shame that we can't play in South America this time. Flake was seriously ill.+++

MafiUndomiel: Did Till write Te Quiero Puta on his own, or had some kind of external help? I know it's not very complicated, nor elaborated in the lyrics, but it's not easy to put two or three sentences together if you don't know the language... believe me! I'm still trying with German!
Paul: He had some help from his girlfriend and from Flake's friend from Chile.
Paul: But Till can already speak Spanish so well that he only had a few questions about grammar.+++

monkeyman: What type of gear do you use when recording in the studio?
Paul: This would take two hours to list. Too much for now. Sorry.+++

Hugo: Why did you choose almost the same cover for the japanese version of Reise, Reise and Rosenrot?
Paul: Because we thought it would be a shame to use the cover only for the Japanese edition.+++

MafiUndomiel: There are many bands that edited DVD and VHS with the footage they got when they recorded their albums, the creative process and all that stuff. Since many R+ fans are really interested in knowing "Rammstein's kitchen", have you considered releasing something of that kind?
Paul: I filmed some of the footage during Reise, Reise and it will come out sometime on a DVD as bonus material.+++

blastedop: What happened to Live DVD? It was delayed?
Paul: Yeah a little bit, but we're going to try to do it this year.+++

MafiUndomiel: I wanted to know how did you put your setlists together when you go to a country you've never been... you mix old and new material, or you prefer to show your new material above all, and play only the "classics"?
Paul: We play a mix of both old and new.+++

Jenna: As you are possibly the most successful band from Germany (singing in German) that you are expected to represent German music and culture to the rest of the world?
Paul: It was never our plan to play all over the world.
Paul: Sometimes we wonder ourselves how this all happened.+++

beurgueur: what american film director would you enjoy to make a ckip with
Paul: Tarantino.+++

Benzramm: Did you ever get hurt when you were working with fire on the live acts ?
Paul: Sometimes.+++

aeon: One Rammstein member said you had a movie project with Werner Herzog. Do you think this project will be carried out and would you like to act in something different from Rammstein videos ?
Paul: It's been awhile with WErner herzog. Maybe it will work out, there's still a plan to do it.
Paul: +++

Rammsteinizied: Dear Paul: What is your favorite live performance effect? (like the flamethrowes in Feuer frei or the bow in DRSG)
Paul: The nose flame throwers that we use in Feuer frei!+++

MafiUndomiel: Which was your first guitar? Do you still own it?
Paul: It was a Telecaster copy. A cheap one. I gave away my first guitars at an auction for a good cause. No idea whether it worked out.+++

Straya: This has been in my mind for a while now, and I must ask. From the sample songs on the official site, it seems Rosenrot might be your 'hardest/loudest' albums, the songs seem 'hard', in a way, like Ich Will, Feuer Frei, and Mein Teil; what do you think of this?
Paul: I don't think so. There are fewer sequences so the guitars come out better.+++

Synthema: Do you still feel that being in Rammstein is almost like being in a six-way marriage? Does the band still function as a tight a unit or have things drifted apart?
Paul: Yeah.
Paul: We're still together. Knock on wood. We've been together for 10 years and now that we've gone through our crisis, we feel better than ever.
Paul: We've got money, success, beautiful women and all the rest.
Paul: Things can only get worse.+++

Jenna: Do you think your videos help to stop you taking yourselves too seriously?
Paul: We've always taken ourselves less seriously than many people think. our best friends know this.
Paul: At the moment, we don't feel like making any humouress videos.+++

whiskeypapa: When writing a song, how many/what kinds of revisions does the song go through before finally making it onto an album?
Paul: Some songs make it out directly as we conceived them. With other songs, we make 20 versions and they still don't make it.
Paul: +++

Noora: HI! I'm a fashion and design student from Finland and I was wondering about your stage costumes...How much do you participate in the designing and making of the outfits that you use on your tours? I understand that every album has its own look. Do you first design the outline of the look as a band and hen consult a designer and maker? Thanx and welcome back to Finland! :)
Paul: Most ideas come directly from the band. For the last outfit, we had the idea to combine Bavarian folkloric outfits with industrial.
Paul: Because Bavarian folklore is not very cool and we like to mix things that you're not supposed to.+++

Beurgueur: Have you ever thought in what your life would be now if rammstein never was created?
Paul: No. We don't think that way.+++

minx: It’s been stated in several interviews that the band has two pyromaniacs in the group, but is there anyone who is not so fond of fire?
Paul: Everybody in the band has a different specialty.
Paul: Each of us is really equally important.
Paul: It doesn'T matter what each does, it could be better when two are on vacation during preparation and actually help us to make a good video this way.+++

Badeend: Who thinks of the titles of the cd's? Is it some kind of democraty or is it 1 man that decides?
Paul: We make the decision as a group but it's not really a democracy. More like a board of directors.+++

Biz: How have older industrial bands (such as Laibach or KMFDM) influenced you?
Paul: A lot.
Paul: Also Ministry.+++

minx: What is the oily black/brown liquid that you are all covered with on stage? Is it a fire retardant liquid?
Paul: No.
Paul: That's a secret.+++

minx: Why did you wear a paper bag over your head at the concert in Tallin, last November?
Paul: I wanted to display an Iraqi prisoner.
Paul: There's a photo of a guy behind barbed wire and he's holding his son but he has a bag on his head.
Paul: That photo really had an impact on me.+++

aeon: Why do you only do signing sessions in London and Paris? Why not in other big cities f Europe or even Germany? Or is anything planned?
Paul: Actually we've only planned for Paris. London snuck in at the last minute.
Paul: I don't know any more signing sessions details right now.+++

Badeend: Did you take gitar lessons or did you teach it on your self?
Paul: Self-taught.
Paul: +++

minx: I am going to be at the signing in London on Sunday. Do you enjoy doing those types of promotional events or are they just ‘hard work’?
Paul: Sometimes it's a lot of fun but other times it can be exhausting.+++

Synthema: It could be said that the "Rosenrot" photos are quite a departure image-wise from what one would expect from the band. Was this something that was decided by the band for a particular reason, or is this the sort of decision that is out of your hands? Does your management or record label have much control over how you present yourselves, or is that left to you?
Paul: We don't like to repeat ourselves.
Paul: Usually the band always has the last word on these amtters. But weR'e not always interested in all of the details.+++

Badeend: What is the new instrument you used in the song Te Quiero Puta?
Paul: Trumpet.+++

beurgueur: do you think you'll be on stage again when you'll be 60? (like rolling stones for example...)
Paul: Hopefully somebody will die first. Then we won'T have to worry about that.+++

minx: Do you do you all do own make-up for the shows?
Paul: Yes.+++

OK-River: Will Rammstein play again "Bück Dich" in a concert, or it is something of the past?
Paul: I wouldn't say no.+++

blastedop: Rosenrot is so diferent from Reise Reise. How is this possible if these songs are from Reise Reise recording season?
Paul: I don'T think so. Listen to the whole album.+++

Benzramm: Are you a sort of scared when flake is going with his boat in the public ?
Paul: No.
Paul: But it was always Oli last year.+++

whiskeypapa: Which of your songs invokes the most emotion from you?
Paul: Seemann.+++

MsBehaviour: Greetings from Finland and good evening! My question is, you have been playing together as a band for quite a many years now, and there is a big difference in the sound of Herzeleid and the sound of Reise Reise. Does this "evolution" come naturally to you, or do you make conscious decisions as to where to direct your sound? How do you feel about the change?
Paul: There are some of us who want to stay the same.
Paul: There's some of us who want to always change.
Paul: These parties fight each other and the result is a new album or a black eye.+++

MafiUndomiel: Have you heard a cover version of Keine Lust made by a Russian guy called Miguel? What did you think about it?
Paul: Not yet, unfortunately.+++

Badeend: Do you have a private jet or do you have to rent a plane?
Paul: When the record company pays, we fly Business. When we have to pay, it'S Tourist class. Sometimes, when the connections are difficult, we rent a litlle jet.+++

luna: First "Snow White" now "Rose Red". Do the members of Rammstein have a fondness for fairytales?
Paul: Who doesn't?+++

Synthema: Do you still enjoy performing live after all these years, or is it more of a chore now?
Paul: If we didn't like it, we wouldn't have been around so long.+++

Benzramm: Is there a double meaning in the songtexts of your songs ?
Paul: Yeah. But the subtleties and double-meanings get lsot in translation.+++

Badeend: What is your favorite song or cd?
Paul: Kill Bill 1.+++

DRS2G: Is "Hilf Mir" inspired by a Heinrich Hoffmann's tale?!
Paul: Yes.+++

Synthema: Have you ever felt that the success of Rammstein has been a negative thing for you in your personal life? That it makes it difficult to decide who to trust and who not to?
Paul: It is difficult to stay normal despite money and success.
Paul: We fight this on a daily battle but we usually win.+++

Beurgueur: from a viewer: what guitar do you use for your c tuning, and what guitar does richard use for this?
Paul: I play a Gibson Les Paul and Richard plays ESP guitars.+++

Benzramm: Did you really go to the mountains for the videoclip "Ohne Dich"?
Paul: Yes. The was the funnest video of them all.
Paul: The thin air up there was difficult.
Paul: I'm impressed by mountain climbers who go even higher.
Paul: It was difficult for our crew and us.+++

MafiUndomiel: how did you and richard decided who was going to be lead and who rythm guitars?
Paul: Good question.
Paul: We're both stubborn.
Paul: It's a fight every time but we're still doing alright up to now.
Paul: Actually, the winner is supposed to be the one who plays the best solo.+++

Badeend: Do you still have to take guitar lessons to play better?
Paul: No.+++

blastedop: Do you visit fansites? How about a Top 10 Fansites in the official page?
Paul: From time to time.+++

Badeend: Why did you pick just that girl for the Texas vocal in Stirb nich vor Mir?
Paul: It was our producer's idea.+++

MafiUndomiel: Paul, is there any country that you´d like to visit or going on tour, and you haven´t yet? Why?
Paul: Yes, we would love to go to Turkey, Mongolia, Iraq. We know we've got lots of fans there.+++

Jenna: Which current musicians (Not youselves, I'm sorry) do you think are creating the best work at the moment?
Paul: System of a Down, Muse, Snoop Doggy Dog, Eminem, Slip Knot, etc.+++

Rammsteinizied: Dear Paul, How do you feel about us fans?
Paul: It's an honour.+++

Minx: Do you have a favourite guitar part in a particular song you really enjoy?
Paul: +++

DRS2G: Will "Rosenrot" be the 2nd single from your new album?!
Paul: Yes.+++

Straya: I'm wondering how this question has not come up yet... but, plenty of people are asking if you guys will tour in America and Canada. I don't mean for this to be one of those annoying questions. But, has anything be talked about?
Paul: I'm certain that we'll tour North and South America with our next album.+++

rammsteinuk: I read in a recent interview that there were some arguments within the band during the production of 'Mutter'. Have there been any more strong disagreements like this since?
Paul: Thankfully not. There's always stress when six stubborn people meet, but nothing serious.+++

minx: Most influential musician on yourself?
Paul: Laibach, Ministry, Metallica, Nirvana.+++

blastedop: Did you like Benzin video? Schneider didnt.
Paul: I don't think it's that bad.
Paul: We've had three really good videos in a row, so it'S hard to keep the standards so high.
Paul: I'm glad that there's some variation, next time we'll improve.+++

whiskeypapa: First, Reise Reise saw a "country moment" with Los, and now Rosenrot has Te Quiero Puta. If you could make a fusion of Rammstein and any other world music (for fun), what would it be?
Paul: Yes, I interested in all combinations of things that don'T fit together.+++

Biz: Are there any downsides to being famous?
Paul: We're famous but we can still buy groceries in Berlin without bodyguards.
Paul: We've got nothing to complain about.
Paul: Our band is famous around the world but we still have normal lives, thank God.+++

minty: Paul are you looking forward to the world cup next year? who will win?
Paul: Yes. It doesn'T look good for Germany right now.
Paul: I hope that a miracle happens.+++

aeon: Do you hope your music will still be appreciated in many years from now or it doesn't matter to you ?
Paul: I think that we're relatively timeless.
Paul: But that'S probably what every band thinks and two years later nobody cares ...+++

DRS2G: Was it good to be directed by Jonas Akerlund?!
Paul: Yes, he's just a cool guy.+++

Ashr: I really liked Keine Lust video, whose was the idea that you were fat?
Paul: It was Schneider's idea.
Paul: Inside the suits it was really hot.
Paul: Thankfully, the warehouse was really cold.
Paul: The whole crew had to freeze but we sweated like pigs.
Paul: The fat make-up took around 4 hours.
Paul: But it was still a lot of fun.
Paul: Most of all, when we had to piss.
Paul: But I won't tell any more details on that.+++

sipp: would you ever consider to bring another musicians on stage during concerts like a trumpet player or so,I really love trumpets maybe because I'm married to that kind of musician unfurnetly he really hates you but I really love your songs and the sound
Paul: Six is more than enough.
Paul: If you ever see us with backing singers, bongo players and horn section, please shoot me!+++

Tomix: Is it real the blood of Till in Live Aus Berlin ??
Paul: Sometimes he hits his head so hard with the mic that he bleeds.
Paul: Thanks a lot I'm going home now.
Paul: See you in five years.
Paul: Just joking, we'll be back.+++

Willow: With you all being parents now, how you feel if your children were to become musicians like yourselves and what advice would you give to them?
Mod: Thank you for joinig the chat! And keep in mind that Flake will have a chat here next week! See you there.
Mod: That's the end for today!

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