Rammstein delivers to metal faithful

CONCERT REVIEW
Rammstein
With: Combichrist
Where: Rexall Place
When: Friday night
First, an admission.
I have no idea what German industrial rockers Rammstein were singing about on Friday night, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't about bunnies and sunbeams.
They very well could have been, considering the lyrics were all German. Sternly declaimed German, to be precise, barked in drill-sergeant tones or shouted like a Klaus Kinski temper tantrum. Couple this with aggressive metal riffs, electronics and thunderous drums and it was by turns ridiculous, over-the-top and incredibly powerful; Rammstein's first Edmonton appearance before a sold-out audience was every bit the spectacle we'd been told to expect.
Dressed like one of the gangs from Escape From New York (except for the keyboardist, who chose a glittery silver suit and appeared to be on a treadmill), Rammstein wandered a stage that intermittently erupted in geysers of fire or steam. There were military attempts at stiffly choreographed stage moves; lead singer Till Lindemann happily unloaded what looked like a blunderbuss packed with fireworks in between verses, and a hapless crew member was set on fire. Random pyrotechnics, streams of confetti and quasi fascist stage moves were the order of the evening. You worried that they might stumble into the flames and harm themselves, but then you realized 'no, they are Teutonic, and therefore invincible.'
Musically, they had a few tricks up their sleeves beyond their hits (Du Hast, Rammstein), moving from battle mode metal to melodic warrior anthems, and even a tender ballad of sorts. None of it was particularly original, but it was undeniable, at least to the audience, who all sang along in phonetic German and happily warmed their devil signing fingers in the fire of rock 'n' roll.
Sacrilegious openers Combichrist whipped the early crowd into a fine froth with a short set that included songs What the F*** Is Wrong With You? and Never Surrender, blunt nihilist anthems powered by two drummers and a singer so tattooed he was murky blue, like a Pictish warrior.