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.
Who you are
Oomph! Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I still can remember who you are
One breath of your lungs has torn me apart
(â??Just help meâ??)
I'm still in the vacuum of your heart
Do you remember just who you are
The cold December has burnt out your star
Annoy me - destroy me - erase me - mesmerize me
I'm still in the vacuum of your heart
I still keep on opening your scar
I'm tryin' to reach your soul but it's hard
(â??Just let meâ??)
I'm still in the vacuum of your heart
Do you remember just who you are
The cold December has taken you far
Deny me - untie me - derange me - paralyze me
Annoy me - destroy me - erase me - mesmerize me
Do you remember just who you are
The cold December has burnt out your star
Can imagine who you could've been
No fuckin' medicine can fondle your skin
The lyrics of Oomph!'s song Who You Are seem to be about a person who is still consumed by their feelings for someone who has hurt them deeply. The imagery of being in the vacuum of this person's heart highlights the intense emotional distress they may be experiencing. The person is unable to forget who this person is, despite the pain they have caused.
The lyrics also suggest that the person is reaching out to the one who hurt them, either for closure or to try and reconnect, but they are finding it difficult to make a connection. The lines "Deny me - untie me - derange me - paralyze me, Annoy me - destroy me - erase me - mesmerize me" suggest feelings of desperation and frustration at not being able to understand or get through to the person they are reaching out to.
The final lines "Can imagine who you could've been, No fuckin' medicine can fondle your skin" could be interpreted as a kind of mourning for what could have been, and a sense that no amount of trying or healing can bring back what has been lost.
Overall, the lyrics of Who You Are speak to the pain and difficulty that can come with trying to move on from a person who has hurt us deeply, and the complicated emotions that can accompany the process.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm still in the vacuum of your heart
I'm still deeply connected to you and can't seem to move on.
I still can remember who you are
I still have vivid memories of you, and they haunt me.
One breath of your lungs has torn me apart
Your presence alone has the power to hurt me deeply.
(â??Just help meâ??)
I'm lost in my feelings for you and need your help to find my way back to myself.
Do you remember just who you are
I'm questioning if you still have the same qualities and traits that once drew me to you.
The cold December has burnt out your star
The hardships you've experienced have changed you and dimmed your once bright spirit.
Deny me - untie me - derange me - paralyze me
You have the ability to control and manipulate my emotions, and I'm powerless against you.
Annoy me - destroy me - erase me - mesmerize me
Even though you cause me pain, I'm still drawn to you and can't resist your hold on me.
I still keep on opening your scar
I can't stop reopening the wound you left in my heart, even though it hurts me.
I'm tryin' to reach your soul but it's hard
I want to connect with you on a deeper level, but it seems as though you've retreated into yourself.
(â??Just let meâ??)
I'm pleading with you to let me in and understand the real you once again.
The cold December has taken you far
You've been through so much that you feel distant and disconnected from yourself and others.
Can imagine who you could've been
I can see the potential you had and the person you could have become if things had been different.
No fuckin' medicine can fondle your skin
Even though you may be physically healed, there's no cure for the emotional scars you carry.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind