Celebration of decadence and pleasure on the eve of the pandemic – reviewing Lindemann’s new live release “Live in Moscow”

Two weeks before Lindemann shot their “Live in Moscow” live DVD on March 15th 2020, the band played a show at the Helsinki Ice Hall. That particular show is currently the last live show I’ve been to as the event industry practically stopped due to the Corona pandemic. But man, what a show it was. I’m hard-pressed to think of a better last show before a long break. That’s why I’m glad that Lindemann chose to record their show from that particular tour in Moscow for the now released “Live in Moscow” DVD. This way it’s possible to return to the vibe of the band’s Helsinki show in the comfort of your own home until it’s possible to attend real-life gigs again.

It may be tempting to compare Lindemann – the project of Till Lindemann and Peter Tägtgren, who has since departed the line-up – to frontman Till Lindemann’s other band. That of course being Rammstein. These kinds of comparisons however aren’t really sensible or fair. Just on the size of their live spectacles alone Rammstein qualifies as one of the largest heavy music performers out there – one that very few other metal bands or any other bands for that matter can compete with. I myself was also present to witness the band’s outright awe-inspiring world-class mega-spectacle when the band visited Tampere’s Ratina Stadium a couple of years ago. Of course Till Lindemann’s side project can’t offer a live show of that size, and expecting one is unreasonable and unfair. This however doesn’t mean Lindemann doesn’t offer their audience any kind of theater or bang for their buck. On the contrary.

Even though Lindemann’s music and lyrics have a lot of similarities with Rammstein, the band clearly has their own distinct identity. Rammstein’s show has a lot of black comedy, but the band’s output is at times also very dark with no humor of any kind. Lindemann in turn is clearly intentionally a more light-hearted and humoristic band whose purpose is not necessarily to directly shock or challenge people, but to purely entertain. Yes, the song topics and visuals of the performances aren’t exactly the most easily accessible for those not familiar with Till Lindemann’s career before-hand. Someone might get upset when the screen fills up with a picture collage of vaginas, Till Lindemann praises a ladyboy’s skills in bed, or the band rocks to the song “Praise Abort” which presents the advantages of abortion with a hint of cheeky humor. Lindemann’s show however is mainly a collection of all the different and increasingly extreme ways that adults often out of their own free will celebrate life and search for new pleasures. Sex, fetishes and drugs – in essence a pure celebration of decadence and pleasure with no regard for good taste.

At times even Lindemann does dare to get sentimental though and tries to be serious. An example of this is the ballad “Home Sweet Home” which deals with a topic I and my close family are familiar with – namely cancer and the fear it incites. The setlist chosen for “Live in Moscow” is in fact quite versatile and flows very well. The gig opens and closes with heavy party metal mayhem, and in between there are moments of atmospheric calm with slower numbers and ballads. The live release’s best moments can also be found in both extreme ends of the spectrum. The atmospheric and dark “Blut” for example is one of Lindemann’s best compositions, and in a live setting the blood-red lighting and water sprays really allow for the song to come into its own. On the other end flirting with electronic dance music we have the party metal song “Platz Einz“, during which Till Lindemann and Peter Tägtgren appear among the audience in a plastic bubble lit in rainbow colors as the rest of the band dons glittery capes like a bunch of glam rock superheroes.

Lindemann indeed isn’t content with leaving their performance on stage for the audience to gawk at, but instead bring it at times to the audience by for example throwing produce at their fans. I myself was born in the early 90s and grew up as a teenager during the 2000s. Lindemann’s show at the Helsinki Ice Hall is the closest I feel I’ve come to the feeling W.A.S.P. fans might’ve had when Blackie Lawless threw raw meat into crowds in the 80s. A circus of decadence where for a couple of hours you don’t need to think or care about good taste, but instead simply experience things and feel alive. Of course Lindemann’s show is by no means exceptionally shocking by modern standards, and throwing things in the audience isn’t a new thing. Ozzy Osbourne for example shoots foam into the audience and throws buckets of water. I have experienced this first-hand myself at Ozzy’s shows. But water dries and foam disappears in minutes. Those things don’t have the same primitively overwhelming feeling as when Lindemann throws cakes at their fans. Or slingshots fish into the crowd while donning raincoats. I myself wasn’t even directly hit with a fish at the band’s Helsinki show, and yet my hair smelled like I had bathed in raw fish hours after the show was over and I arrived home after a long bus ride. Watching this same insanity unfold on the “Live in Moscow” DVD, I can almost smell that fish again.

1. Skills In Pills
2. Ladyboy
3. Fat
4. Frau & Mann
5. Ich Weiss Es Nicht
6. Allesfresser
7. Knebel
8. Home Sweet Home
9. Cowboy
10. Golden Shower
11. Blut
12. Platz Eins
13. Praise Abort
14. Fish On
15. Ach So Gern
16. Gummi
17. Steh Auf