Thing I wish was explored more in fic/fanart: Luigi feeling guilt over revealing Mario's name, even if under duress. Once the crisis is over and Luigi has time to think, he realizes how that slip-up could have gotten Mario killed. Him feeling like, had they swapped places, Mario never would have revealed Luigi's name.

This feeds into my headcanon that after he was rescued, Luigi didn't ever talk about his time in The Dark Lands, and certainly didn't talk about the interrogation. Not only is there a lot of fear connected to those memories, but a lot of guilt and shame, not just because of what his brother went through to save him, but the fact that he didn't put up a fight against The Shy Guys and... most of all... the fact that he gave in and cracked during Bowser's interrogation. Like you said, he feels like if they'd swapped places Mario wouldn't have been so "weak."

It is definitely something I'd like to see explored further.

Sonic Seducer - June 2017, interview with Paul

Provocations have been part of the Teutonic craft at Rammstein since the early days. So far these have been directed against the establishment or the disdainful bourgeoisie. There have been quite a few live recordings over the years, so a completely different approach should make for a frenetic new fireworks experience. With the extraordinary film document 'Rammstein: Paris', however, the Swedish star video director Jonas Akerlund, who has been responsible for the video clips of the superstars in Hollywood for many years, has created such a manic, powerfully edited marvel from 30 camera perspectives that a concert visitor cannot be taken, alternate with crazy close-ups in a staccato editing sequence that is unparalleled. Surprising effects, which one would not expect in a live recording, round off the experience, but also have a polarizing effect on the fans. After a successful theatrical release in 46 countries, the Director's Cut is now available on DVD and Blu-Ray (the audio version on CD, vinyl and digital) in various configurations, some of which are very exclusive, for the home cinema format, and the inclined fan is after the unusual cinema experience something, certainly came to the conclusion 'PARIS KILLS, I have to see that at least one more time!'. The home cinema look-up now comes up with 30 minutes of additional playing time and contains the songs 'Sehnsucht', 'Links 2 3 4', 'Haifisch', 'Amerika' and 'Ich will' and continues the 'Made in Germany' tour from 2011-2012 a cinematic monument. The first part of the following interview is part of the 12-page title story of the previous issue, in which detailed impressions of the production of the new album can be found. Hear from Paul first-hand how the band responds to critical voices about 'Rammstein: Paris' and which concert variants are conceivable or not and some personal impressions.

Is it still surprising to you that, no matter which country you play in, your audience always knows the lyrics of all the songs despite the German language? It is also noticeable on the Paris recording that the songs are practically sung along with everyone.

Paul: It doesn't really surprise us anymore. We don't know anything other than the whole hall singing along at once. It's more like people from Germany who attend our concerts abroad are totally surprised and no longer understand the world when they see how many visitors are in the halls and how loudly they are singing along.

These effects, for example with Till's snake tongue in the song 'Mann gegen Mann', which are actually quite unusual in live recordings, were these also what you had in mind?

Paul: There are different opinions in the band. Let's put it this way: we think that's okay.

Was it planned from the outset that the film would be released in cinemas or was a DVD/Blu-ray recording originally planned?

Paul: That's a good question, I don't really know anymore. I imagine we were already on the clock to consider a theatrical production. But it could also have been the case that we first decided that we would see what the result looked like and then we would think about what we would do with it.

How do you as a band assess the result of the film? There were relatively polarizing opinions after the film's release, ranging from euphoric enthusiasm to criticism about the editing being too quick, too few long shots and hardly any audience images.

Paul: In principle, we as the band Rammstein see it the same way as the fans.

In my opinion, the Akerlund film has become something special and extraordinary. Our editorial team doesn't think it's so bad that there are a few critical voices. Since enough other Rammstein DVDs have already been released, we think it's good that you did something like this.

Paul: Personally, I see it that way too, I sometimes miss the long shots and longer shots of the individual musicians and the audience. I don't like the quick cuts that much and I don't like some of the effects that much. But the experiment was definitely worth recording in this form, both for the cinema and at home. The film is generally unique among live recordings and unique in this form.

Can you also imagine the recordings with an orchestra?

Paul: Personally, I think it's really bad when bands start with an orchestra at an advanced age and then, in the worst case, also sit on chairs. I hope the cup passes us by. We once had the idea that we shouldn't play as a band together with an orchestra, i.e. not guitar and drums, but that the band would actually become part of the orchestra and take over the appropriate instruments such as piano, timpani or triangle and play the Rammstein songs in this constellation . So it shouldn't look like Metallica and it shouldn't lead to such a strange result. But we're not there yet, we're having too much fun playing our songs as they are. So we put the idea of doing an opera house tour aside for now. If so, then it should really be completely classic and not 'rock meets classic', I always think that's really bad. In addition, we always have classical elements in our songs. We have often had strings, trombones and completely orchestral passages. It could also quickly happen that a complete orchestral implementation has no effect at all. When I think about it, it really doesn't feel good. What do you think about that?

Well, from my point of view Metallica's implementation failed and they still released it. I could imagine this well with some of your songs, but less so with others. I would imagine Till at the burning triangle would be quite funny. Pyrotechnics are unlikely to be allowed in any philharmonic hall. In this respect, Rammstein would be deprived of a characteristic element and would actually focus purely on the orchestral implementation. It really has nothing to do with ‘old people’. There is the ‘Gothic Meets Klassik’ event in Leipzig once a year. There, scene bands of different sizes study their songs with an orchestra or these songs are professionally arranged for live performance with an orchestra. Sometimes this works better and sometimes worse. The audience and the bands themselves have always been very moved. Some bands pick this up again later.

Paul: Well, I might be a bit too radical if I reject that completely. It probably really depends on the songs and how it's implemented. When an orchestra really gets going, it can be really good and moving, and you're absolutely right. But if it just comes out with some weird mayonnaise, that's really not nice.

You've played a few festival appearances and occasional concerts in recent years, but eight years is a long time since your last album. The other band members have released solo albums or books, for example. What does Paul Landers do?

Paul: Everyone in the band does it differently. I started windsurfing at some point. I then grab a small board with a sail and then we set off. Olli once introduced me to it and I fell into it. We pack up the boards and go to South Africa or Hawaii and then we start there and we're happy about it. I generally like to travel or go climbing, that's fun too. I also have a family and of course they want to see me too, and that's nice.