Taking Words From Another

Sometimes you hear something said in a language you don't speak yourself, and it just works, even when it's meaningless due to a lack of comprehension. Sometimes just the flow and rhythm makes it into art, simply as the aesthetics of sound make it so.

I've found that I get huge amounts of amusement and pleasure from listening to the work of Rammstein, though it's almost entirely in German, and I don't speak German myself. The lyricist is a poet, and so comprehension is not necessary for enjoyment of the words. It also helps that I like the music itself, and that I could work out some of what was being sung (or threatened in the case of some songs).

I've found that a gentleman by the name of Jeremy Williams has published English translations of the lyrics of Rammstein's music. Note these are translations, not adaptions. They are not lyrical or poetic. They bring the words from one tongue to another, and are good prose in their own right.

Having read his translations, and those of others around the place, I've become even more appreciative of the lyrics. Very simply put the lyrics are brilliant, and as far as I know they're mainly written by Till Lindemann, the primary singer, hence the name of this page.

Many of the lyrics are tongue-in-cheek, and there's a screamingly in-your-face theme of love (and its siblings hate, lust, and resentment), but it's also really beautiful, even when it's deliberately provocative or brutal. Some songs are utterly blatant, such as Rein Raus, but others are really heavily layered with ambiguity and extra meaning, so it'll be pretty tricky to try and cover everything that might be taken from the German lyrics. It's also going to be close to impossible to work in German plays on words with English. I'm going to try really hard though!

I haven't heard back from Jeremy yet, but I have asked for permission to make use of his translations, as I attempt to take poetry translated and re-lyricise it.

I also contacted Rammstein's management firm to get their blessing, but they're also not responding. At this point I figure I'll just go ahead and if they don't like it maybe they'll finally get back to me. Nothing better for whipping people out of their lethargy than doing something they don't like, right?

I'll post my work here, though not Jeremy's translations. I like what he's done with Herzeleid.Com, and will not harm that by reproducing his work in that way.

With regard to the works of Rammstein, they are absolutely within their rights to shut me down. Until they do I hope I'm not doing them any harm and that whatever I come out with is enjoyed. What I'd really like is their approval, but the odds of them acknowledging me are slim to none.

More to come...

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