Made in Germany

“Here's a daily sample of items recommended for you: Miles Davis – Milestones; Shostakovich - Symphony no 7; Simon and Garfunkel - Bookends; Rammstein – Made in Germany  1995-2011.”

I think I have finally and completely broken Amazon’s search engine although, in fairness, it’s all stuff I like – and look, Rammstein have a new album out. Actually it’s a “Greatest Hits” album of sorts. The problem with these albums is that no two people are ever going to agree on the content. They can be objective by including tracks based on sales or chart placings - or a simple singles collection. Some artists have gone as far as letting their fans choose the listing which is very democratic but may throw up choices which are not the easiest entry point for the casual listener – which is surely the target audience. Many artists will produce an album to promote their latest tour – which is what I believe Rammstein have done here. However, for a fan of the group (I have all six studio albums) I would say it is neither their best nor most accessible material. The question is, what would I pick?

Made in Germany has one new track, Mein Land; this is often a sneaky trick to get die-hard fans to buy the whole album but they have released this as a separate single (£7 for the CD single on Amazon – sod that!) which is decent enough. They have a couple of other singles-only releases in Das Modell (a Kraftwerk cover) and Stripped (the Depeche Mode song) I would have included the latter but they chose neither - I suppose, in fairness, they are both cover versions so it isn’t entirely representative of the band's output. However, they only include one song from their first album, Du Riechst So Gut, inspired by Patrick Süskind's Das Perfum (as was Nirvana's Senseless Apprentice). I've no arguments with that as it's a great track but they have omitted their second single, Seemann - probably my favourite Rammstein song. Other tracks that could have been included are Asche zu Asche and Rammstein but possibly more for historical reasons. There are two tracks included from their second album: Engel and Du Hast. I wouldn't argue with these choices either and I tend to find the Sehnsucht album a bit hard-going lyrically - it lacks the morbidly black humour of later albums whilst still addressing subject matter that is unlikely to make for comfortable dinner party conversation.

Made in Germany takes five tracks from their third album, Mutter. In fairness, I think any of the tracks could have made it to a Best Of album but, inevitably, some tracks would have to be left off. Having said that, it is a great surprise that one of their best known tracks, Feuer Frei!, is missing. Not only was this a UK hit single but also featured as the opening theme music to the Vin Diesel film XXX (admittedly, it was probably the best thing about it). I'm not sure what the rationale was behind it but, if anything, I would have left off the track Mutter in it's place. The next album Reise, Reise lends 4 tracks to the compilation but, whilst I have no issue with Mein Teil or Ohne Dich, I'm not sure why Amerika or Keine Lust were included other than the fact that they were singles (in which case, why no Seemann or Feuer Frei!) In their place I would have included the far superior Moskau, the title track Reise, Reise and, possibly, the unusual acoustic Los.

They only include the title track, Rosenrot, from their fifth album. This a decent enough single based around the Brothers Grimm faery tale but I would have thought the Benzin and Mann Gegen Mann singles should have been included as well. Rosenrot tends to be a rather unloved album but I think it definitely has its plus points and Wo Bis Du (a duet with Texas's Sharleen Spiteri) and the haunting electronica of Ein Lied are pretty decent if a little off track for a greatest hits compilation. However, I found the selection from sixth album, Liebe ist Für Alle da, to be quite strange. For a start, why is the risible Pussy included (probably the worst thing they have done and surely only intended as a stunt.) The other track is the single Haifisch, which is OK, but they miss the excellent Ich Tu Dir Weh and I would have thought Rammlied, Mehr and Wiener Blut are more than worthy of inclusion.

Ultimately, Greatest Hits compilations are not intended for the confirmed fan but the curious casual listener. In that respect, they have covered a reasonable amount of material but I think a straight singles collection would have produced a more rounded album. In fact, for a new listener to the band, I would recommend the Mutter album as a much better starting point altogether. Never mind - that Miles Davis CD looks interesting.