Mutter (English: "Mother") is the third studio album by German Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein. It was released on 2 April 2001 through Motor and Universal Music. The album's cover image is a photograph of a dead fetus, which was taken by Daniel & Geo Fuchs. The album has yielded six singles which, to date, are the most released from any Rammstein album.

Writing and recording

From September to December 1999, the band rented the house Weimar in Heiligendamm on the Baltic Sea for pre-production. The sound recordings took place in May and June 2000 at Studio Miraval in southern France. In advance of the album's release, Rammstein released the song "Links 2 3 4" on their website for download in December 2000. The single "Sonne" was released in January 2001.

Critical reception and legacy

In 2005, Mutter was ranked number 324 in Rock Hard magazine's book The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time. In a 2016 article published by uDiscover, Oran O'Beirne described the album as "one of the most important contemporary releases within heavy metal’s many subgenres." In the interview with Noizr Zine, the well-known Swedish producer and musician Peter Tägtgren advised "Mutter" as a reference work for beginner producers: "'I think, if you are not into death metal or something like that, but if you are into metal, I would say maybe Rammstein’s 'Mutter' is very good, because it has a lot of different elements, it has orchestra parts, heavy guitars, good drum sound — that could be a good reference.'"

Track listing

There are various editions of Mutter, each with different features: Note: Some copies that have "Halleluja" as a hidden track can not be played for unknown reasons. On 3 April 2010 Rammstein posted a video with an official translation of "Halleluja" on their Facebook page, "in light of recent events".

Personnel

Rammstein

Guest musicians

Production

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications