Hi guys! I'm a bit early this time around. As I'm going to get my costume ready for Genericon next week (an awesome college convention in northeastern New York state), I realized that I probably don't have time to do a full review. Luckily, since I got a response from Uncle Yo about my reivew of his DVD, I figured what the hell and do another review of something Japan related. This time, I got a CD review for you. So, for your please, here's a review of Rammstein's album Reise Reise...the Japanese Edition.
Before the review, a story. Way back in 2001, the band had released their album Mutter to critical success. After the release, however, many people in the music world, and the band themselves, believed that they were going to break up. Luckily, Rammstein decided that a break from music would ease up the tension they were feeling. Around late 2003/early 2004 (I'm not sure on this) the band said that they were back together and making new music. Then, on November 27, 2004, Reise Reise was released.
Now, for the Japanese Edition to make it's entrance. In Mid-2005 (April 21, to be exact), Reise Reise was released in Japan. However, it was a bit different from it's European & American counterparts. Different album artwork, as well as audio being removed & replaced were the things that distanced itself from it's brethren. Ironically, the album was re-released in 2009 with the original artwork and audio put back, but keeping the audio they added in 2005. However, I'll be going over the original 2005 version, as I haven't been able to find the 2009 re-release for purchase on Amazon.
Starting off the review are the physical & audio changes. The American & European releases of Reise Reise were designed to look like a flight box from a German airplane, complete with the phrase Flugrekorder Nicht Offnen (Flightbox: Do Not Open...if my translation is correct) on the front in grey-black lettering. On top of that, there is 30 seconds of a flight recording on the CD (European Edition has it at the end, while the American Edition has it at the beginning). Now, why is this bad you ask? Well, that requires another story.
In the evening August 12, 1985, Japan Airlines Flight 123 had crashed into the mountain ranges of Mt Fuji due to the rear pressure bulkhead suffering from explosive decompression. The ensuing accident killed off 520 of the 524 passengers and crew members, and as of 2011 remained the single most horrific disaster in airplace history. The 30 second recording that I mention above was the final 30 seconds of the flight before they crashed, and you can hear the pilot yelling and panicking.
Now, if the American/European version was released in the Japan, that would have caused an uproar. So the band made some changes. As far as the outside physical changes, they replaced the flightbox artwork with the artwork that they were going to use for their next album, Rosenrot (albet slightly altered). If you'd like to see the outside physical changes, take a look at the Amazon links below. Just to note, the Japanese Edition had a slip of paper on the outside, so it'll slightly obscure the front:
Reise, Reise (American Edition)
http://www.amazon.com/Reise-Rammstein/dp/B0002XDODU/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1330131684&sr=1-1
Reise, Reise (Japanese Edition)
http://www.amazon.com/Reise-Rammstein/dp/B0007N38LI/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1330128892&sr=8-8
Rosenrot
http://www.amazon.com/Rosenrot-Rammstein/dp/B000BK8FH4/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1330128842&sr=1-2
Luckily, there aren't any changes to the inside of the album booklet. The lyrics are the same as the American/European releases (although there was a small booklet with the lyrics in Japanese). As for the inside artwork, nothing has changed.
The audio changes on the Japanese Edition aren't as drastic. The 30-second flightbox recording was taken off, and you don't hear it at either the beginning or the end of the CD. To make up for the missing audio, remixes were added for two of the songs (Mein Teil & Amerika).
Truth be told, I kinda like the changes. It's a original product that is somehow new at the same time. It's actually ironic, since I bought the American edition a few months after it was released, and I didn't even know that there was a Japanese Edition until 2006 or 2007.
As for the audio, there is no real difference between the Japanese Edition and the others. All of the music (except for the remixes) is exactly the same. Since the 30-second audio clip is missing, it's kinda weird to not hear it. Despite that, the songs sound exactly the same. I pretty much liked the American Edition of Reise, Reise, and in turn I loved this version. The remixes are pretty cool as well. Of the two, I like the remix of Mein Teil, but both sound awesome. The remixes for both songs are right below if you want to listen to them:
Amerika (Digital Hardcore Remix)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeQoemvuPEs
Mein Teil (You Are What You Eat Remix)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5w-rCpOXjfg
Like I said above, I loved this edition of Reise, Reise. There was only one thing that almost prevented me from receiving it (I got it as a Christmas gift back in 2010), and one thing that'll prevent people from buying it, and that was availability. Back in 2010, it was a 5-year old album that was hard to find outside of Japan. Luckily, Amazon had a few copies on the American website, but even then there was still some trouble. To my memory, there was only 10 copies available at the time, and they were somewhat expensive. The cheapest that I saw was a little over 35 dollars, but my Grandma, in her infinite badassness, got it for me.
Nowadays, the album is close to becoming 7 years old, and it's even harder to find on Amazon. As I'm typing this, there are currently only 6 available in the used section. The section is right below for those brave enough to consider buying one:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0007N38LI/ref=dp_olp_used?ie=UTF8&qid=1330128892&sr=8-8&condition=used
For me, this album was a 10 out of 10. However, if anyone already has the American or European Edition, the ratings will probably range from 7 to 8.5 out of ten. I honestly liked the way that the Japanese Edition of Reise, Reise looks, feels, and sounds. People who've already heard the music before might not like it, but still find it cool as a collector's edition.
See you guys after next week. Until then, stay Otaku!
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