OOMPH! is an industrial rock band from the neue deutsche härte scene.
Read Full Bio ↴OOMPH! is an industrial rock band from the neue deutsche härte scene.

OOMPH! consists of:
Robert Flux (guitar, mixing)
Andreas Crap (lead guitar, keyboards)
Leo (live drums)
Hagen (live bass)
Der Schulz (lead vocalist)

The band was formed in 1989 in Wolfsburg, Germany. They are one of the founders of the fusion of hard metal music and industrial sounds known as Neue Deutsche Härte.

OOMPH! owed a lot to Nitzer Ebb in their self-titled debut (1992). OOMPH!'s change of style for the successor "Sperm" (1994), with a more guitar-driven metal sound mixed with their electronic roots, inspired numerous musicians, most famously Rammstein, to follow their lead. (Rammstein have cited OOMPH! in several interviews as their main inspiration.)

OOMPH! released their first album on Jor's Machinery label, then releasing their consecutive albums on its sister-label Dynamica. They stayed with Jor, until his labels disappeared during the acquisition by Sanctuary Records at around 1996/1997.

Following Dynamica OOMPH! finally signed with Virgin Schallplatten. With the benefits of major-label status OOMPH! gained a larger following, and toured with labelmates Skunk Anansie in 1999. Between 1998 and 2001 they released three albums on the Virgin label, fulfilling their contract, but did not continue, feeling that the record company never fully explored their potential.

In 2004 OOMPH! released their first single "Augen auf!" on a new label, this time on Supersonic Records, part of the Sony BMG group of music companies. It marks their first Number One hit ever in Germany, thus eventually bringing forth their major commercial breakthrough. It became part of the FIFA 2005 soundtrack.

The band's ninth record, GlaubeLiebeTod was released in March 2006, including the controversial single "Gott ist ein Popstar" and its follow-up "Das letzte Streichholz", the third single was Die Schlinge.

In 2007, they won the third Bundesvision Song Contest (a contest between the sixteen states of Germany) for Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen) with "Träumst du?", which featured Marta Jandová from Die Happy.

While OOMPH! are not widely known within the United States, the band did perform at a New York festival in 1993. In Europe they have performed at M'era Luna, Ozzfest, Dynamo Open Air and Wacken Open Air.

Dein Feuer
Oomph! Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Selig sind die geistig Armen
Alle die I'm Geiste Lahmen
Scheinbar gibt es kein Erbarmen
Mit uns die mit Zweifel sind

Selig sind die Geistig Blassen
Alle die das Fremde hassen
Die sich lieber führen lassen

Weil sie gerne Sklaven sind

Sie liegen dir doch längst zu Füßen
Und alle sind sie taub und blind
Auf wunden Knien woll'n sie büßen
Weil sie nur arme Sünder sind

Mich führst do nicht in Dein Feuer
Mich führst do nicht hinter's Licht
Ich lass dich nie hinter's Steuer
Nein, mich verblendest do nicht!

Selig sind die Geistig schwachen
Alle die I'm Geiste flachen
Scheinbar gibt es kein Erwachen
Für all die, die Hörig sind

Selig sind die Geistig Toten
All die Führer und Despoten
All die hoffnunglos devoten
Alle die zu feige sind

Sie liegen dir doch längst zu Füßen...

Mich führst do nicht in Dein Feuer...

Mich führst do nicht in Dein Feuer...

Sie liegen dir doch längst zu Füßen...

Mich führst do nicht in Dein Feuer...

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Oomph!'s song "Dein Feuer" (Your Fire) describe a world in which those who are mentally weak and spiritually stagnant are deemed "blessed" while those who question and doubt are treated as outcasts. The first verse speaks of those who are mentally poor and crippled in spirit, implying that they are the ones who are truly blessed because they are free of doubt and are content with their limited understanding of the world. The second verse speaks of those who are weak-willed and prefer to be led rather than thinking for themselves. They are content to be slaves to their own ignorance, rather than seeking knowledge and growth. The chorus repeats the sentiments expressed in the previous verses, that those who are weak and unable to see the truth are the ones who are favored while the singer insists that they will not be taken in by the false promises of those who seek to manipulate them.

The lyrics speak to the danger of apathy and willful ignorance, and how they can lead to a loss of personal power and autonomy. By embracing a belief system or ideology blindly, one can be led astray and manipulated by those who hold power over them. The repeated refrain of "Mich führst du nicht in Dein Feuer" (You're not leading me into your fire) is a declaration of independence and a refusal to surrender to the will of those who seek to manipulate and control.

Line by Line Meaning

Selig sind die geistig Armen
Blessed are the mentally poor

Alle die im Geiste lahmen
All those who are lame in spirit

Scheinbar gibt es kein Erbarmen
There seems to be no mercy

Mit uns die mit Zweifel sind
For those of us who have doubts

Selig sind die geistig Blassen
Blessed are the spiritually weak

Alle die das Fremde hassen
All those who hate the foreign

Die sich lieber führen lassen
Those who prefer to be led

Weil sie gerne Sklaven sind
Because they like being slaves

Sie liegen dir doch längst zu Füßen
They are already at your feet

Und alle sind sie taub und blind
And they are all deaf and blind

Auf wunden Knien woll'n sie büßen
They want to atone on wounded knees