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Five minutes into the first song they lit themselves on fire. Every member, from the lead singer to the drummer was in flames. After they were extinguished, they lit their instruments on fire. A couple songs later one of the band members crawled on all fours to the front of the stage. The lead singer whipped out a prosthetic phallus and proceeded to piss on the other band member, then the audience, then himself. As an encore, the keyboardist jumped in a canoe and rode the mosh pit as the singer shot flaming arrows over the screaming Frankfurt crowd of fifteen thousand.

It's the BarFly's big rock and roll issue, let's talk about music. Seeing Rammstein in Germany tops my list in the live music department. I remember last year at System of a Down, someone stole Serg's stage costume. As far as I was concerned, it didn't detract from the show. It was the best concert I have been to so far in Portland. Incubus was decent, but they should have both opened for Mr. Bungle instead of the other way around.

In recent times, mainstream rock and roll has become angry. Even the casual observer would agree. Why? Music is a message, a message directly influenced by the times, the culture we live in and our social interactions. When we take time to examine the music of a certain time period we are taking a closer look at a snap shot or one ring in a tree.

When we hear a song or an artist, we interpret the meaning instantly according to our own individual personalities. When we find a feeling or emotion we can relate to we found a favorite group. Personalities are built by environment and upbringing. This is the only theory that explains the attraction of country music. Confucius believed that music was a primary factor in education and the spirit of the community was formed by the music it heard. In music, we find themes that give a kind of order to our lives. Confucius is a great mind, but I believe that we are both right. When we pick our music we are perpetuating our order, be it good or bad.

—Ian Avi