Oomph!’s new (and awesome) album Monster managed to reach the impressive position of #8 on the official German charts, and now the boys are putting on even more pressure. That is to say, today saw the release of a new single, Labyrinth.

As has most often been the case with Oomph! singles, the new release is also available in two different configurations. The standard version contains the title track Labyrinth and also the album opener Beim ersten Mal tut’s immer weh, while the limited digipak edition has three extra tracks. Here’s the catch: two of the bonus songs are the ones that were included in the special editions of Monster sold by Amazon and the Müller discount store, Ich will dich nie mehr sehn and Unter deiner Haut, so it’s a fantastic way of catching two elusive bonus tracks if you didn’t have a chance to get either of the aforementioned special versions of Monster. The third extra track is a Labyrinth remix by Agonoize.

Update: Of course, it’s also possible to actually buy the single at most stores, for example Infrarot.de (3,99 € for the standard edition, 7,99 € for the limited) or Outoflineshop.de (3,99 € standard, 6,99 € limited), but I’m sure also your favourite internet store carries both versions.

Tracklisting for Labyrinth standard edition by Oomph!
1. Labyrinth
2. Beim ersten Mal tut’s immer weh

Tracklisting for Labyrinth limited edition by Oomph!
1. Labyrinth
2. Beim ersten Mal tut’s immer weh
3. Unter deiner Haut
4. Ich will dich nie mehr sehn
5. Labyrinth (Agonoize Remix)

This past Friday, August 22nd, we saw the re-release of 2 Die Krupps albums, Volle Kraft Voraus and I (One). Both albums are significant releases for this historically important band, but display very different styles because an entire decade passed between their original release dates. And both re-releases have lots of previously unreleased bonus material.

Volle Kraft Voraus was the second album by Die Krupps and was originally released all the way back in 1982 when the band was at the forefront of industrial sound experimentation. This re-release contains 2 discs, the first of which is a completely remastered version of the album plus the original version of “Goldfinger”. The second disc contains the original album as it sounded in 1982 plus a few other 12″ mixes.

Skip ahead 10 years to when Die Krupps released I, their 4th full length album, in 1992. This album marked the beginning of their use of electric guitars in combination with industrial beats, once again showing how far ahead of their time Die Krupps really was, and laying down the roots of the Neue Deutsche Härte genre. This re-release also has 2 discs. The first one has the “Atom H” remixed version of the album (Atom H was the first record label founded by Die Krupps frontman Jürgen Engler in the 1980s) and 3 bonus electro versions of some of the album’s tracks. The second disc contains the original album from 1992 plus 5 demo songs that were previously not released.

If you consider yourself to be a Die Krupps fan, you have to get these re-releases. You can find both of them on Amazon.de for 15.97 Euros (Volle Kraft Voraus here and I here), or take advantage of their combo deal and get both for 31.94 Euros. In America, you can find both at Isotank for $25.99 each (Volle Kraft Voraus here and I here).

Continue reading for the complete tracklisting of both re-releases.
(more…)

If you’re a big Rammstein fan, you probably know that the band’s name was inspired by a tragic airshow accident that occured at the Ramstein airbase. It happened 20 years ago on this day, August 28th, 1988, in what was West Germany at the time. The Italian Air Force’s show team Frecce Tricolori was performing a maneuver known as the “pierced heart” when 3 planes suddenly collided in mid-air and plunged into the crowd below. Sadly, 70 people were killed including the 3 pilots, and an additional 346 spectators were seriously injured.

Let’s take a moment to remember this event and the people who died on that day. Then, get our your Herzeleid CD and listen to the song “Rammstein” which was created in memory of this disaster. Music always sounds better when you know what emotions inspired it.

Oomph! is back in the news. Their new album Monster will be released in just 10 days on August 22nd, and has 13 tracks including the single “Wach Auf!” which was featured in the German version of the movie Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem. A second single “Beim ersten Mal tut’s immer weh” has already been released as well, with the third single “Labyrinth” still to come.

To some of their (former) fans’ dismay, Oomph! has continued with the more mainstream sound introduced on their hit album Wahrheit Oder Pflicht, causing mixed reactions to previews of Monster. The band’s image has also come under scrutiny, the most amusing example of which was a comparison of Oomph as an older version of the pop-rock boy band Tokio Hotel.

Take a listen to some of Oomph’s new songs from Monster. Take a look at their image. What do you think? Is the band headed in the wrong direction?

If you ask me, well, let’s just say I’m not listening to Oomph as I write this. At least their album cover is decent this time, but then again it was the result of a fan contest. Maybe they should let the fans make their music, too.

Oomph! - Monster tracklisting
01. Beim ersten Mal tut’s immer weh
02. Labyrinth
03. 6 Fuß tiefer
04. Wer schön sein will muss leiden
05. Die Leiter
06. Lass mich raus
07. Revolution
08. Auf Kurs
09. Bis zum Schluss
10. In deinen Hüften
11. Wach Auf!
12. Geborn zu sterben
13. Brich aus

Fanoe’s Empire Dirt available as a free download

Greg told you all about Fanoe’s second album, Down to Heaven, but if you haven’t checked them out yet, now’s your chance to get a taste of what the Swiss industrial-rock group have been doing. The first album, Empire Dirt, is now available in its entirety as a free download, along with two tracks from Down to Heaven. Head on over to the download area of the site and choose between 320 and 192kbps mp3 packages. If you like what you hear, the albums are available at cdbaby, iTunes and cduniverse among other retailers, or consider making a donation to support the band directly.

Eisbrecher’s Sünde: US release delayed

Dancing Ferret Discs had been set to release Sünde in the US on August 26, but unfortunately this will not be happening, presumably as a result of the plans to shut down DFD’s operations. No new North American label or release date has yet been announced by Eisbrecher’s management, and at this point, there will likely be a delay of at best several months before a US version is on the shelves. Import versions of both the single and the album will however be available through IsoTank and amazon.com, or for download from iTunes and amazon. The German release is unaffected and still on schedule for release on August 22.

A new Treibhaus album out in October?

Last October, Treibhaus announced that they had begun work on their third album, Alarmstufe Rot. The other day, there was a brief mention on the band’s myspace page that the album would be released this October. This has not yet been confirmed and the note has since been removed, but it sounds like a reasonable timeframe.

UPDATE:

Curt from Treibhaus recently sent out a newsletter with more details on the album release. Recording and mixing is done, only the mastering left to be done. He reported they are on track for a late October or early November release.

Eisbrecher updated their website yesterday with news that their upcoming album Sünde is now completely recorded and that it is now being mastered. But the biggest news is that the band’s bassist Martin Motnik has left the band to move to Los Angeles. They tried making the long distance relationship work out, but it just wasn’t possible.

Who will be replacing him? It’s none other than Olli Pohl! Olli was formerly the bass player for Alexx and Noel’s old band Megaherz, and also helped fill in for a few Eisbrecher concerts in the earlier days of the band, but now he has become a full fledged member. Eisbrecher will be playing their first concerts with their new bassist later this month on the 19th and 20th at the Rockharz and Amphi Festivals.

Eisbrecher’s Sünde coverart is here, single tracks

The highly anticipated release of Eisbrecher’s third album Sünde is drawing ever closer, although it’s still about one and a half months until you can get your sinful hands on the CD. However, the coverart for the album has been showing up in various places, and there you have it on the left for your viewing pleasure (click for a slightly bigger picture). Like the cover for the soon upcoming single Kann denn Liebe Sünde sein?, it’s quite a departure from what you might have expected. You can already preorder the album (and the single) at various places, information on that can be found in the earlier newspost on the matter. As for some further information on the single Kann denn Liebe Sünde sein?, Infrarot.de tells us there’ll be three tracks: along with the title song there’s a remix and an exclusive, non-album track.

Oomph! Monster tracklisting, possible release date

The tracklisting for the other huge German metal release this August, namely Oomph!’s tenth album Monster, has been floating around the internet recently. I can’t say for sure if it’s the real one, but I don’t see why it couldn’t be legit. It seems the previous single track Wach auf! will not be on the album, which I think only makes it more believable (Wach auf! was featured on the Alien vs Predator 2 film and the single was released shortly after the film). Also, EMP.de tells us that the release date for Monster would be 15th August, but as often is the case with release dates given by retailers, it’s more or less likely to change. Here’s the tracklist:

Tracklisting for Monster by Oomph!
1. Unter Deiner Haut
2. Labyrinth
3. Wer Schön Sein Will Muss Leiden
4. Revolution
5. Beim Ersten Mal Tut’s Immer Weh
6. Ich Will Dich
7. Nie Mehr Sehen
8. Auf Kurs
9. Du Lügst
10. Geboren Zu Sterben In Deinen Hüften
11. Brich Aus
12. Bis Zum Schluss
13. Lass Mich Raus

It looks like Eisbrecher’s new single “Kann Denn Liebe Sünde Sein?” could be delayed by one week. The new release date, according to Amazon.de, is July 18th, but EMP.de still says the 11th as of now. Neither site has a tracklisting yet, but if you’re a big Eisbrecher fan and you want to order the single as soon as possible, just head on over to Amazon.de and get it for 7.99 Euros. EMP is a Euro more and won’t ship to the USA anyway.

Amazon also gives us our first glimpse of the “Kann Denn Liebe Sünde Sein?” cover art. It seems pretty simplistic, nothing like previous Eisbrecher covers, but it is what it is. Click here or the image above to see a bigger version.

As for Eisbrecher’s forthcoming album Sünde…
There’s still not much info about it other than it will be available in 2 different versions. Both versions are available to pre-order from several sites including Amazon.de, AlphaMusic.de , and EMP.de.

Thanks to Nadja for keeping us up to date in this post.

3-CD Antikörper Summer Special

Eisbrecher also just released a 3 disc box set of their previous album Antikörper called the Antikörper Summer Special yesterday, June 27th. This limited edition item is essentially a combination of the album and its 2 related singles “Vergissmeinnicht” and “Leider”. You can find it on Amazon.de or EMP.de, both of which have it for the price of a typical album.

The combination of Greg going MIA and me slacking off because of the holidays is not a good thing for Germaniac. Here’s the catch-up news post for some of the most important stuff that’s been happening in these couple of weeks. I hope we’ll be able to resume normal operations as soon as possible! All the tracklistings and ordering information relevant to this post can be found behind the link at the end, because with them this already horribly lengthy post would be, simply put, INSANE.

Oomph!’s album #10 to be Monster

Oomph!, one of the pioneering bands of the industrial metal and NDH genres, will be releasing their tenth album in August according to Oomph!’s official site. The record, of which we got a little taster with the single Wach auf! which was released earlier this year, will be titled Monster. Not much else is known of the upcoming record, except for some tidbits revealed in a German interview. Amongst others, we’re going to get an “electro metal tango” piece and a blues song as well.

No doubt in celebration of their tenth album and as a sign of gratitude to their fans, Dero, Crap and Flux are also offering fans a unique chance to permanently cement themselves in the Oomph! legacy by running a contest for the cover design of the new album. Anyone can send in their visions of what the cover should be until June 27th, and the boys themselves will then choose the final design that will adorn the album. A number of the submissions can already be checked out here, and they range from quite horrible to insanely cool. I for one am eager to find out what the final product will look (and sound!) like!

Megaherz single soon

Before the hotly anticipated new album Heuchler, Megaherz will release the single Mann von Welt on June 20th. There will be two versions of the single: a basic one with Mann von Welt and Es Brennt, a bonus track from the sold out limited edition of Herzwerk II, and an EP-length limited fan edition version with three additional songs from older albums. As far as I can see, the fan edition is not very necessary unless you’re new to Megaherz and need to sample the older stuff, but the single is a great opportunity to hear Es Brennt, which is an excellent song you might very well have missed the first time around. You can hear a preview of Mann von Welt on Megaherz’s Myspace and official site.

Eisbrecher’s single detailed

The first single from Eisbrecher’s upcoming album Sünde will be titled “Kann denn Liebe Sünde sein?”, and it will be released on July 11th. This is, however, a Germany-only release, so completionists will have to pay an extra buck or two (or more like ten) if they want to get their hands on this release. No cover or tracklisting has been made public as of yet, but if the previous singles by Eisbrecher are of any indication, this one should too sport a couple of remixes and possibly a bonus song or other small feature alongside the main track itself.

Die Apokalyptischen Reiter single

Die Apokalyptischen Reiter, a well-respected German trash metal outfit will release a single titled Der Weg on 27th June. The single features two songs from the upcoming full-lenght release Licht, which doesn’t have a release date yet, and two bonus tracks. The physical CD version of the single published by Nuclear Blast is limited to only 1000 copies, as it was originally planned to only be available via iTunes. Die Apokalyptischen Reiter also released a live DVD earlier this year.

Unheilig’s Spiegelbild EP revealed

The tracklisting and cover design for Unheilig’s Spiegelbild EP have been finally revealed. True to the style of the EPs before, this release is limited to just 3333 pieces and has a total of three different versions of the title song, a new version of the earlier single An deiner Seite and also a trio of completely new Unheilig tracks. Spiegelbild will be released on 26th July.

Laibach’s Dead in Trbovlje in July

Laibach have pushed back the release of their new DVD, which was originally slated for release on 16th June, to 26th July. Titled Dead in Trbovlje, the DVD will feature a full live concert from their widely acclaimed Volk tour, four music videos and on top of that, six of the background screens/videos Laibach used in their Volk shows. There’s also a short commentary on the tour.

Thanks to Nadja for all the tips!

That’s it for now. I know there’s a ton I missed, but at least we have something to cover up the massive time gap we’ve been experiencing. Here’s hoping that Greg will be back in full force soon!

Check out the tracklistings for these items after the jump…
(more…)

The old saying “time flies” is certainly true. It seems like Unheilig’s current album Puppenspieler was just released last week, but it has already been 3 long months since it came out on February 22nd. During that time, the band performed a very successful tour (until Der Graf’s vocals gave up and some concerts had to be cancelled, but thankfully he is doing much better now) with the bands goJA Moon Rockah and F.A.Q. as their opening acts. Now, these 3 bands have been brought together once more, but this time it’s not on stage, it’s on a round piece of plastic.

Just yesterday, May 20th, the split album Schattenspiel was released. The tracklisting, which is packed with unreleased and live versions of songs from all 3 bands, is set up just like it was in the concerts with the 2 opening bands first and then Unheilig being the main event at the end. The idea, of course, is for the lesser-known openers to get some extra exposure and gain some new fans. And it’s a good idea, too, especially because both goJA moon Rockah and F.A.Q. are very talented bands and definitely worth a listen. Be sure to visit both of the bands’ MySpace pages and listen to some of their music: goJA’s is here and F.A.Q.’s is here.

Once you’ve determined that you like all 3 bands and you want to snatch this album up (because it’s limited to just 3,333 units and is sure to sell out fast), head on over to Emso.de if you’re in Europe or Isotank.com if you call North America home. I know there are a lot of Unheilig fans here, you’ll really like this.

Schattenspiel split CD tracklisting

goJA moon Rockah section
01. Attackah Massakah
02. Rockah
03. Schwarz

F.A.Q. section
04. Ten bells
05. Leather Apron

Unheilig section
06. Schutzengel (live)
07. Kalt (exclusive)
08. Sage Ja (live)
09. Brief an Dich (exclusive)
10. Freiheit (live)
11. Leblos (exclusive)
12. Mein Stern (live)
13. Dornröschen (exclusive)