Thread by @taejinception

alternate interpretations of rammstein's ich tu dir weh: a thread

this song had been censored in germany for containing graphic descriptions of bdsm acts. but like most rammstein songs, something deeper lies beneath all the violence. like how bestrafe mich, despite the bdsm-coded lyrics, is a song about the relationship between man and god.

the first clue lies in the identity of the two parties mentioned in the song. even though genders of the torturer and the tortured in the lyrics aren't disclosed, recent academic publications suggested that both of them are, in fact, of the same gender.

the line "and lead rodents into you" sticks out as over the top for a good reason. it's a tongue-in-cheek reference to an old homophobic urban legend about how homosexuals derive sexual gratification through inserting hamsters up their behind.¹

hence, at face value, the song might be describing a twisted homosexual bdsm relationship, but a line in the bridge changes the meaning completely: "i see your face in the mirror". the two characters are of the same gender because they're the same person.²

a body/soul schism being described like an abusive relationship is common in music. this motif of internal divide won't be out of place in lifad alongside b******** (the struggle between two personalities) and führe mich (the ominous harmony of two souls in one body).

"you are the ship, i am the captain." the body is just a vessel for the soul. when the expectation of the soul exceeds the ability of the body, this would cause the soul to punish the body, but the body would still faithfully serve its master. a lack of self-love is illustrated.

however, there's some room for a darker interpretation since it's implied in the making of that the lyrics are semi-autobiographical. how the song reflects the way till needs pain. how the performance came from somewhere real in him, somewhere dark.

perhaps, instead of being a body/soul divide, it's about the frustration between the perfect, all-talented artist persona and the real, flawed individual beneath it. e.g. in jk's decalcomania, the human fears that the artist hates the true self underneath.

carl jung once said that whoever looks into a mirror would only see his true face. not the persona, the face one shows to the world. the mirror doesn't flatter.³ the artist persona looked into the mirror, and hated the flawed self he saw: "you love me because i don't love you."

instead, the artist prided himself as the one who owns the achievements ("i stick medals into your face") and being the only way for the human, whose body enjoys pain, to redeem and express itself on stage ("you bleed for my salvation. a little cut and you're turned on").

i won't speculate too much on the autobiographical side, but it's worth noting that while till was willing to bore through flesh to show a light shining from within, flake in the live performance gives a hint of a happy conclusion: a shining victorious self, reborn from the pain.

citations:

¹ heather sevigny (2019), rammstein in amerika and the subversion of masculinized sexuality
² corina gruber (2012), rock theatrics and poetry: the new catharsis
³ carl jung (1935), archetypes of the collective unconscious