Review & Photography by Jeff Kunze for MPM
Rammstein front man Till Lindemann has embarked on his first ever solo tour through the United States and made a stop at the Myth Nightclub in Maplewood, Minnesota. Twin Temple and Aesthetic Perfection rounded out the bill.
Aesthetic Perfection hit the stage and was led by frontman, Daniel Graves, infectious energy. He moved the around the stage and engaged the audience the entire set. Joining Graves on stage was guitarist and keyboardist NOIZITH and Brook Colucci on drums.
Their music is a cross between industrial and pop with an electronic thrust. Until this tour, I hadn’t heard of this band but clearly, I was in the minority as people were singing the songs and completely consumed by them.
I bought in to the music as the songs were catchy and songs really jumped off the stage. It was clear they were going to take advantage of every second they had on stage and left people wanting more. They were the perfect opener for this tour.
Coming to the stage second was the satanic doo-wop group Twin Temple. A band I had heard of as they have come through Minnesota on a number of tours but I had yet to catch them live. They truly have a unique vibe to them.
They were dressed in a vintage retro type style clothes that played perfectly with the set they played. It was like an eerie ritual experience as they laced in occult tones to the sounds of the 1950’s. There was no question that the catalyst was vocalist Alexandra James.
Her voice was fantastic and delivered a haunting effect over the crowd. She played off of guitarist Zachary James and together they created a show I’ve not ever quite seen before. They have made a mark in the Minnesota judging by the response they got throughout the night.
I last time I saw Till Lindemann was at UsBank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota a few years ago as he fronted Rammstein on the biggest stage I have ever seen.
The amount of theatrics and fire used that night was unbelievable. My first thought was what could he do in a venue that would be a mere speck at UsBank, and that answer came quickly…plenty. Opening with the song “Zunge” the show came at you and never let up.
The visuals were almost over whelming at times as the band all draped in red hit you with everything they could. The musicians around Till were Jes Paige and Emily Rudvidich on guitars, Danny Lohner (Nine Inch Nails) on bass along with Constance Day on keyboards and Joe Letz (Combichrist) on drums.
Till has a voice that is instantly recognizable and his solo material falls right in line with the heavy industrial sound Rammstein is noted for.
Some of the songs they played included “Fat,” “Allesfresser” and “Golden Shower.” The graphic imagery coming from the screens really should not have caught fans off-guard. With Till, anything goes and the production and execution of this show was nothing short of amazing.
What more do you want from a show, they had a stripper pole for the keyboard player, cakes flying around and a hand cannon that shot fish into the crowd. That is just a few of the adventures given to the crowd.
Even with Till singing in all German people were engaged the whole night. He played to the crowd and was the ringleader to a circus that dripped in mayhem and chaos. He played the role perfectly and I found myself emerged in every movement he made.
The band was really fantastic and really entertaining. They were the perfect side show for the madman to play off of and provided a sonic attack that you felt as much as you heard.
The set was around sixteen songs but it flew by quickly. A truly fantastic show that you’re not likely to see again until Till decides to do this again and try to top himself, which seems impossible but we are talking about Till, and we all know he will find a way.
