Rammstein turned up the heat in every sense when they slayed Stadium MK on Saturday night.
It's safe to say that Milton Keynes had never seen anything like it. And the two-hour flame-tastic event was witnessed by a sell-out 30,500 crowd who came to party, writes Sammy Jones.
Rammstein didn't disappoint; with exploding babies and dinghy travel working their way into the gargantuan set. It was a pyrotechnic spectacle and a half.
Was ich liebe, taken from their new self-titled album launched the musical proceedings for the evening.
There is no easing the fans in gently with the new material, and the majority of the new opus, their first in a decade, makes it into the setlist.
Impressively, after an announcement asking people not to record the show, the majority adhere to the request, and instead of a zillion screens pointed to the stage, a fist frenzy sees the air punched with every industrial-sized beat. And as any Rammstein fan knows, there are lots of those.
Links -2-3-4, Tattoo and Sehnsucht follow in quick succession, but tonight is as much about the spectacle as the music.
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The band are theatrical titans, and tonight Stadium MK is illuminated in light – pyro's don't just happen on the stage, but all about the arena. It's hot. And loud. And mouth-dropping impressiveness.
And when the flames subside, black smoke billows into the night sky. One can only imagine what shoppers at the supermarket next door must have imagined as they picked up their weekly groceries...
Half way through the show frontman Till Lindemann attempts to cook 'Flake' Lorenz who is now in a metal cauldron, pointing a flamethrower at the cauldron. His band mate eventually raises a white flag. It's silly and sensational in equal measure, and exactly what people want to see.
Instead of big screen watching, Rammstein deliver their performance with fiery finesse. At one point, the band hit the stage in light up outfits with a little dance routine, and fans imitate the moves.
As much as Rammstein's crown is for their position as industrial metal masters, their electronic edge gives them an instant connection with dance fans, and never more so than at this point in the proceedings.
Du hast is a universal highlight, and when the band appears on a second stage on the flat of the arean, they travel back to the main stage on dinghies, using their audience to push them forward.
Yes, they've done it before, but it's still a sight to see.
Ich Will, from the 2001 album Mutter, brings the show to its climax, in a night that will long be remembered. And one that will leave ears ringing for weeks.
As thousands depart, buzzing from the biggest show they'll see all year, somewhere, in a quiet corner of Milton Keynes, the towns' fire safety officer is starting a long lie down in a dark room...
Words: Sammy Jones
Pics: Jens Koch
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