Stade de France, Paris, France – July 22, 2023
After three fantastic shows in Berlin, several of the band members seemed to be a little more withdrawn in Paris. Though after a near perfect queuing experience, the audience got served a good show and a playful Paul Landers who even paid another visit to the front row.
By KidArctica and Sez
Stade de France is huge. Located in Saint-Denis, a few kilometres north of Paris, it is the biggest stadium in France and the sixth largest stadium in Europe with a seated capacity of 80,698. Originally built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, it is now the home stadium for the French national football and rugby teams for international games.
While normally hidden under the football pitch, the stadium has a running track as well. For track and field events, it is the largest in Europe, and at the 2024 Summer Olympics, it will host the athletics events. The stadium also hosts numerous huge concerts.
In 2015, Stade de France was one of the targets in the series of coordinated shootings and bombings across Paris. While two explosions went off outside the venue as the terrorist was unable to get into the stadium, scared after seeing the security. Since then, security has been improved further.
Perhaps that is why security at Stade de France was the absolute best we have encountered so far this tour. We were a bit worried in advance, partly because there were four entrances for Feuerzone with forced entry through the one assigned to you on your ticket, partly because we had been told in advance that Saint-Denis had a higher crime rate than other Parisian suburbs, and partly because the French audience is known for being very passionate.
We had nothing to fear. The worst part of entry was that two in our group were literally ‘bugged’ at night, unknown exactly by what, possibly some kind of fleas. Waking up with lots of red dots on hands and face that gradually turned bigger and started itching like mad, was not particularly fun. Also, it would have been nice if some in our group wouldn’t have to line up alone, separated from the rest (although this did turn out to be an advantage with the many entrances).
Other than that, everything about the entry was close to perfect. Between 6 and 7 am, security went to the groups waiting outside the different gates and asked them to move aside while they set up barriers. The security did not only want to use the numbering, they even went around adding the entry gate letter to people’s numbers. When the barriers were set up properly in a long zigzag pattern, everyone was guided to the correct waiting spots, where we got to enter after a ticket and brief bag check, and sit down in numbered order inside the lane.
In addition, we had our own steward that let waiting people in and out of the waiting area so they could get food and drinks and use the bathroom. While some people tried to fake numbers at one point, once security was told, they reacted by throwing out a few, in addition to checking numbering diligently afterwards.
As entry time drew closer, we got a bit nervous, especially since we were not yet let into the gate area. It is common to line up in front of the actual gates, but in Paris, people weren’t allowed into this area before actual entry. This seemed to work really well, people spread out to gates, scanned their own ticket, proceeded to a security check, and then it was a short distance into the venue with guards all the way reminding people to slow down. Of course, there was some running, but nonetheless, this entry was very controlled.
The only real drawback of the Paris entry was the four Feuerzone entrances. Even if they are all opened at the same time, there will always be differences that can screw you over. As mentioned previously, our group was spread out across multiple entries, which was a nuisance for waiting, but had the advantage that we had the number one spot in line at three of the four entrances. After entry, the three of us ended up next to each other exactly where we wanted in the front row. That said, had we not been a group, then at the very least one of us would not have made it, simply because one entrance got delayed compared to others. This became obvious when we saw the number 2 from that gate ending up far at the edge of the front, whereas people with a much higher number from another gate made it to front and centre.
Still, Paris is now up there among the best entries we have ever had for a Rammstein concert. If they had used only one entrance, it would probably rival Gothenburg due to their excellent organisation of the waiting time! (By the way, Gothenburg’s head of security is still a legend – and as we have since found out, she is actually a Rammstein fan herself. You rock, Anna!)
Once in place, it became clear that the French audience is indeed passionate. From the start, everyone was standing so packed together that it was more or less impossible to move anywhere within perhaps the first five rows of people. Even changing standing position was difficult. Front security was handing out water though, and luckily, no one needed to use the bathroom – because getting through would have been a big challenge. Only later did we see photos of the crowd that showed how full Feuerzone actually was long before the show started. It was pretty crazy.
At 8 pm, Abélard went on stage. Since the entry was quite late at 5:30 pm, this meant that we only had to wait inside of the stadium for about 2.5 hours, which is also something very pleasant to note about the whole Paris concert experience. In their home country, Abélard got loud cheers from the audience as they addressed them in their native language. Interestingly enough, the response actually seemed to be reflected in their playing – they played much more lively than in many of the other shows, and got deserved applause for their performance.
Normally, it takes about 18-20 minutes from when Abélard finishes until Rammstein goes on stage, and so the band was expected to go on shortly after 9 pm. We were surprised when nothing had happened even ten minutes past, though soon after, we could hear the cheers from one side of the tribunes, which normally indicates that the band is entering the backstage area. And at 9:14 pm, the centre screen turned on and what we by now like to call our ‘national anthem’, Music for the Royal Fireworks, finally started playing.
In Berlin, Rammstein used three different opening screens. For Paris, they had gone for the version with a close-up of Till Lindemann‘s lit-up mouth that slowly zooms out to display the vocalist in full as he descends. Soon after, the rest of the band entered the stage. As temperatures in Paris were pleasant, both Paul Landers and Christoph Schneider had used their regular costumes for this show.
The former seemed to be in a playful mood. He entered stage without wearing the characteristic sunglasses, which is unusual for him. Instead, he had them hanging from his collar. Perhaps he forgot to put them on? From the start, he interacted with the audience in classic Paul style.
What was a little peculiar, was that during Mein Herz brennt, Richard Z. Kruspe didn’t join Paul on the left side. He went to the middle as usual, but instead of heading to Paul’s side to share a mic with him for the chorus, he went back to his own spot. During the Mein Teil intro, which is one of the highlights of the show for all PaulChard fans, the two of them did come together – but only somewhat. They kept about two metres distance from each other, and while they were smiling and rocking out, one could not help to wonder if one or more of them were sick. This theory was strengthened by the fact that several of the crew members had been spotted wearing face masks.
Oliver Riedel was also more withdrawn in Paris. He went to his usual dance spot for the Puppe outro, but didn’t actually do his little performance. For Sonne, he didn’t join the others on stage for the last part. In general, he seemed to miss a bit of the energy he had in Berlin, which is a pity, as he is so much fun to watch when he plays around.
While Oliver didn’t dance, both Paul and Schneider seemed to have found the rhythm during Puppe. Schneider did some kind of robot dance, or walk, or whatever to call it, in the back while waiting for Till to bring the pram on stage. And Paul decided to join Richard in the ‘mosquito dance’, much to Till’s chagrin – he probably thought it was enough that one of the guitarists did it.
Puppe also saw Flake Lorenz pick up the bell and ring it when Till came to inspect him with the camera.
And after Angst, Paul was at it again. First he checked the height of the CO2 jet next to him, then he stuck his head into it, or at least he tried. We had definitely hoped for a case of messy hair, but his hair refused to get out of shape, and retained the typical Paul shape. Maybe next time!
One of the funniest moments of the show was when Flake was happily sitting in the pot at the start of Mein Teil. Paul took off his guitar and stuck it into the pot to properly stir the Flake broth. He then retrieved his guitar and proceeded to pretend to lick it, twice, although he didn’t seem 100% satisfied with the cook. It seems that Till’s cooking skills still haven’t improved since Berlin.
On his way back from the B-stage, Richard picked up a small, pink inflatable bird of some sort – swan or flamingo? When he reached the stage, he showed it to Till while wagging its wings, which made the vocalist smile in disbelief and amusement.
In the third Berlin show, Paul came down to the front row to thank the audience. To everyone’s surprise, he came down to the front also in Paris! After Ohne dich, the crowd started stirring, and suddenly, the guitarist appeared. He moved along the front row almost to the centre, greeting people, and smiling broadly. It is always so lovely when Paul acknowledges the audience like that, and having it happen twice in a row was almost surreal!
Till seemed a little less energetic in Paris, though he was the one most people talked about after the show. When he entered the stage after Rammstein, his left arm had a huge gash that was bleeding quite heavily. What and when it happened, is of course unknown, but a theory was that the heavy pyro backpack could either have caused it or potentially opened a previous wound. Nonetheless, it looked quite gnarly, and made many people worry about him.
The French audience seemed responsive. From other sources, we heard that fewer people than normal sang along with Bestrafe mich, but that may be because it’s an older song that not everyone knows the lyrics for? The language barrier was probably also the reason why, during Ich will, the usual cheers after “Wir wollen, dass ihr uns vertraut” [We want you to trust us] were lacking in Paris. Paul just shrugged though, and Till simply sang the next line, the one he has skipped so many times this year due to the audience’s response.
A touching moment happened after the last bow. While Richard took his bow alone, Till waited for him, and the two of them took a final bow together before walking off stage with their arms around each other. It was a small gesture, but still a display of how the band sticks together, and it is really nice to see.
After the concert we were really sweaty – not from the heat, but from standing jam-packed for the entire show. It was difficult to jump and cheer as much as usual, but the show was nonetheless good and memorable. While it didn’t beat the very best shows this year, the organisation was great, and we are really happy to be able to report that our worries about France were all for nothing. Should there be another show in Paris, we will definitely be back.
Merci beaucoup, Rammstein and Paris!
22.07.2023
- Rammlied
- Links 2-3-4
- Bestrafe mich
- Giftig
- Sehnsucht
- Mein Herz Brennt
- Puppe
- Angst
- Zeit
- Deutschland RMX
- Deutschland
- Radio
- Mein Teil
- Du hast
- Sonne
- Engel
(Piano version with Abélard) - Ausländer
- Du riechst so gut
- Ohne dich
- Rammstein
- Ich will
- Adieu
Sez and KidArctica are RammWiki editors who have been part of the website for years, working in the background with edits and content. Fun Fact: Along with KidArctica’s Rammstein collection, there is a handwritten note in case of sudden death to ensure relatives know the collection is valuable and that it should not be thrown away.
