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The idea for the band began in 1994 by Richard Kruspe, Christoph Schneider, and Oliver Riedel. Kruspe had escaped to West Berlin five years prior, shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall, and had formed the band Orgasm Death Gimmick whose style was influenced by heavier American bands. Kruspe eventually disbanded the group, feeling the music he was making did not reflect his persona, and began work on a new group with Schneider and Riedel. The three decided a fourth member was needed to complete the band, and approached Till Lindemann to be their lyricist and vocalist after Kruspe overheard him singing while basket-weaving.
Shortly after forming, the band entered a contest in Berlin for a professionally recorded demo CD. They won this contest and also piqued the interest of guitarist Paul Landers. Christian “Flake” Lorenz, a former bandmate of Landers, was also approached by Rammstein and the pair joined as the final additions. Soon after, the band was signed by Motor Records and began to recorded their first studio album, Herzeleid, in 1995. By 1996, they had already released another album and headlined several tours throughout Germany and many surrounding countries. Mid 1996 saw the band break out of the region and perform on MTV in London. Their international appeal was not fully realized until two of their songs were chosen for the soundtrack for the American major motion picture, Lost Highway; this brought the band’s music to the US and throughout the rest of Europe.
The band’s popularity only grew over the following years; their next album, Sehnsucht, reached number 1 in Germany within two weeks of being released. Several of the songs on the album broke the top 20 charts in Germany with its first single “Engel” reaching gold status. In late 1997, Rammstein made the trip across the Atlantic to tour in America as the opening act for KMFDM. Back in Berlin the next year, the band performed to their biggest German crowd yet, over 17,000 fans. Due to the band’s rise to stardom, this show included larger supporting acts with artists such as Danzig, Nina Hagen and Alaska. This show, later released as the live DVD, Live aus Berlin, was recorded and reached gold and platinum certification in Germany and many other countries, including the United States. The Family Values Tour in the US in 1998 headlined Rammstein along with Korn, Ice Cube, and Limp Bizkit during which Sehnsucht reached gold status in the US.
Over the next years, Rammstein’s success continued with several new records and singles reaching higher statuses and the band itself being nominated and winning multiple awards, including the Grammys, Hard Rock Awards, and MTV Awards.