XXXIII: Limited Edition Collector’s Vinyl Box (33 x 7‘‘s)

Over the course of three decades and eight celebrated studio albums, with 2022’s ‘Zeit’ the most recent, Rammstein – the great Berlin-based collective – have spectacularly redefined the worlds of heavier music and darker, alternative culture.

What’s more, their unique reinvention of these worlds has been achieved by the same musicians (take a set-closing bow Till Lindemann, Richard Z. Kruspe, Paul Landers, Oliver Riedel, Christoph Schneider & Flake Lorenz – the line-up is unchanged since the start), employing their own language and their own logic ‘n’ lore, with zero concessions made to prevailing trend an’ fashion. 

When the so-called ‘tastemakers’ are moving one way, Rammstein will already be heading in the opposite direction, arms linked, making fresh footprints in the snow.

As in any enduring relationship, there have been times when the six have seen things differently, and made no secret of the fact; however, binding everything together is a core set of practices and beliefs – let’s call it ‘The Rammstein Way’ – that remain resolute and undisturbed, underpinning a career trajectory that now sees this iconic brotherhood testing the structural worth of larger stadiums across the planet.

Here is a group who don’t just tear up the rule book, they give it a ritual cremation using the more powerful of Till’s flamethrowers, the one usually reserved for bringing a rebellious Flake back into line; a group who have never adhered to the traditional album / tour cycle, releasing new music and playing incendiary live shows to millions of fans according to their own personal calendar (let’s call this ‘Rammstein Time’); a group whose visual approach, spanning artwork, photos and videos, has consistently challenged accepted views of what a hard rock band – a German hard rock band – could or should be…

As a result, they are now well drilled when it comes to closing ranks and making their voices heard, pushing back against prejudice, petty authority and outmoded ways of thinking; they aren’t a political band, but they do carry a strong set of beliefs, and if they feel it right to venture where others might fear to go, they have the artistic and intellectual gravitas to launch a united head-on assault, supported by a degree of dusky humour.

Simply, as anyone who’s ever attended a Rammstein show will be aware, and these are acknowledged rites-of-passage events, there is no other concert-going experience that easily compares; no-one else treading the same hot coals, breathing the same smoke-filled air with the same smell ofbenzin in their nostrils…

If you use the term ‘Rammstein-esque’, it effectively means, well, Rammstein. 

That’s it.

And, peering back through the smoke, it’s clear that the ingredients that make the East Berliners the stand-alone proposition they are were already there and playing a key role right from the start, from debut album, ‘Herzeleid’, onwards…

Released in September 1995 and rising to the No. 2 spot on the German charts, ‘Herzeleid’ (‘Heartbreak’) was the official point of entry for both band and brand; the start of a record-breaking, chart-topping, award-winning, outrage-inducing, thigh-slapping, Grammy-nominated, David Lynch-approved journey that has consistently broken new ground, sometimes the internet, and achieved multiple gold and platinum sales on a global basis; a journey that is now in its 30^th year, surely an occasion, atrue milestone in musical history, to be marked in time-honoured Rammstein style.

During the making of ‘Herzeleid’, it was noted by the production team that when big decisions had to be taken, the band members would call a “German Conference”, which could run for up to two hours. How long the meeting lasted on this occasion is not known, or indeed what potential forms of celebration were discussed (a 12 month long Spartakiad, perhaps?!), but there’s no question that the final verdict ticks all of the boxes when it comes to quality, collectability and supreme attention to detail; a bespoke, career-spanning item put together with full band involvement, plus the desire to create something that fans, especially longstanding fans will truly appreciate…

Damen und Herren, please welcome the ‘XXXIII’ limited edition collector’s vinyl box set, genuinely a project 30 years in the making… 

Happy Anniversary, Rammstein!

Scheduled for worldwide release on November 14th, 2025, ‘XXXIII’ sees Rammstein delving back through their extensive archive to create the definitive vinyl collection of their officially issued singles, running from ‘Du Riechst So Gut’ (first available August 1995) right through to ‘Adieu’ (November 2022), the final single / video from ‘Zeit’.

In order to achieve the best possible sound, the individual 7”s – 33 in total – will be pressed onto black vinyl; if there was a special radio or promo edit made, then this will be the version used, the idea being to keep all aspects as true to the Rammstein story, this extraordinary twisted fairytale, as possible. Hence, every B-side chosen will relate to the original release, and all of the picture sleeves will carry the artwork of the time, with longstanding collaborator Dirk Rudolph – the designer behind some of the band’s most well-known visuals, including the famed logo – brought in to oversee the presentation.

Naturally, with an enterprise of this stature, a great deal of “German Conference” level thinking went into the outer packaging, the final selection being a pitch-black wooden box with the Rammstein logo, reproduced in metal, embedded flush into the top, the whole thing limited to a strict one-off worldwide run of 6.000 units. Rumour has it that the boxes are being constructed by ancient, forest-dwelling artisans using the wood chopped up during the ‘Dicke Titten’ video, but this has not yet been substantiated…

So there is it (insert fireworks and LaBrassBanda salute here): ‘XXXIII’ – a comprehensive, lovingly crafted 7” singles collection showcasing some of heavier music’s most individual, most influential, most talked about and, of course, most successful recordings; ‘Engel’, ‘Asche Zu Asche’, ‘Sonne’, ‘Links 2 3 4’, ‘Ich Will’, ‘Mutter’, ‘Feuer Frei!’, ‘Mein Teil’, ‘Amerika’, ‘Ohne Dich’, ‘Keine Lust’, ‘Rosenrot’, ‘Angst’ and many more, the list is hugely impressive, including two German No.1’s in ‘Pussy’ and ‘Deutschland’, plus the global smash hit that is ‘Du Hast’ – a staple of soundtracks and video games, voted amongst the Top 100 Heavy Metal Tracks by Rolling Stone US.

Altogether, surely the greatest set of 7”s since the flight-case of wonder and delight released in support of the ‘Liebe Ist Für Alle Da’ album back in 2009!

Dante Bonutto

Tracklist

I. Du riechst so gut

 A1 Du riechst so gut – Single Version

 B1 Du riechst so gut - Scal Remix

II. Seemann

 A1 Seemann – Single Version

 B1 Der Meister

III. Engel

 A1 Engel – Single Version

 B1 Wilder Wein - Demo Version 1994

IV. Du hast

 A1 Du hast – Single Version

 B1 Du hast - Remix By Jacob Hellner

V. Das Modell

 A1 Das Modell – Single Version

 B1 Kokain

VI. Du riechst so gut '98

 A1 Du riechst so gut '98 – Single Version

 B1 Du riechst so gut - Remix By Faith No More

VII. Stripped

 A1 Stripped – Single Version

 B1 Stripped - Heavy Mental Mix By Charlie Clouser

VIII. Asche zu Asche

 A1 Asche zu Asche

 B1 Wollt ihr das Bett in Flammen sehen - Live Version

IX. Sonne

 A1 Sonne – Single Version

 B1 Sonne – Clawfinger K.O. Remix

X. Links 2 3 4

 A1 Links 2 3 4 - Single Version

 B1 Halleluja

XI. Ich will

 A1 Ich will

 B1 Ich will – Paul van Dyk Mix

XII. Mutter

 A1 Mutter – Radio Edit

 B1 5/4

XIII. Feuer frei!

 A1 Feuer frei! - Single Version

 B1 Feuer frei! - Rammstein vs. Junkie XL Remix

XIV. Mein Teil

 A1 Mein Teil - Single Version

 B1 Mein Teil - You Are What You Eat Edit Remix By Pet Shop Boys

XV. Amerika

 A1 Amerika - Single Version

 B1 Amerika - Western-Remix By Olsen Involtini

XVI. Ohne dich

 A1 Ohne dich – Album Version

 B1 Ohne dich - Mina Harker's Version, Remix By Laibach

XVII. Keine Lust

 A1 Keine Lust – Single Version

 B1 Keine Lust – Black Strobe Remix

XVIII. Benzin

 A1 Benzin – Single Version

 B1 Benzin – Combustion Remix By Meshuggah     

XIX. Rosenrot

 A1 Rosenrot - Single Version

 B1 Rosenrot – Northern Lite Remix

XX. Mann gegen Mann

 A1 Mann gegen Mann – Single Version

 B1 Mann gegen Mann - Popular Music Mix By Vince Clarke

XXI. Pussy

 A1 Pussy – Radio Edit

 B1 Rammlied

XXII. Ich tu dir weh

 A1 Ich tu dir weh – Radio Edit

 B1 Pussy - „Lick It” Remix by Scooter

XXIII. Haifisch

 A1 Haifisch – Single Version

 B1 Haifisch – Remix By Hurts

XXIV. Mein Land

 A1 Mein Land - Single Version

 B1 Vergiss uns nicht

XXV. Mein Herz brennt

 A1 Mein Herz brennt - Album Version

 B1 Gib mir deine Augen

XXVI. Deutschland

 A1 Deutschland - Album Version

 B1 RMX by Richard Z. Kruspe

XXVII. Radio

 A1 Radio - Single Version

 B1 Radio - RMX by twocolors

XXVIII. Ausländer

 A1 Ausländer - Single Version

 B1 Ausländer - RMX by R3hab

XXIX. Zeit

 A1 Zeit - Single Version

 B1 Zeit - RMX by Ólafur Arnalds

XXX. Zick Zack

 A1 Zick Zack – Single Version

 B1 Zick Zack - RMX by Boys Noize

XXXI. Angst

 A1 Angst - Single Version

 B1 Angst - RMX by twocolors

XXXII. Dicke Titten

 A1 Dicke Titten - Single Version

 B1 Dicke Titten - LaBrassBanda Version

XXXIII. Adieu

 A1 Adieu - Single Version

 B1 Adieu – RMX by Richard Z. Kruspe