Rammstein

After nearly ten years without a new studio album, Rammstein returned with this self-titled record — an aggressive and deceptively dance-worthy collection of tracks that blurs the lines between metal, industrial, and pop. The album opens with the coupled tracks “Deutschland” and “Radio,” together rendering a heart-wrenching view of post-war German exceptionalism and its repercussions decades later. Both songs are unusual, with high energy techno synth lines and big, arena rock guitar riffs that signal dance party but are really harbingers of a descent into doomier, heavier industrial beats. Rammstein never loses their dry, sarcastic humor, with songs like the anticolonialist “Ausländer,” with its danceable pop beat, and “Sex,” which is an unsurprising, horny-as-hell ode to Till Lindemann’s desires. Rammstein is a show of force, a nod to the band’s histrionic grandeur, their prowess as musicians, and a warning that more mayhem is coming.