Rammstein: Ohne Dich Meaning
Song Released: 2004
Ohne Dich Lyrics
Dahin wo ich sie zuletzt gesehen
Doch der Abend wirft ein Tuch aufs Land
Und auf die Wege hinterm Waldesrand
Und der Wald er steht so schwarz und leer
Weh mir, oh weh
Und die Vögel singen nicht mehr
Ohne...
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1TOP RATED
#1 top rated interpretation:The song is really about love to a very specific woman. An unfulfilled love.
I am German by birth, 51 yo. I experienced the band in its beginning and think I get the vibe quite well.
Do not overestimate the literal meaning of words. Yes, "Gräben" might refer to "Gräben" as in "Schützengräben", 2 Meter deep holes, formed to corridors. But no, if you see it in relation to being on the ground or deeper in the ground and compare "Äste" to something being up high or higher it actually simply defines the ambiguity that Love is. At its very high it will raise your spirits and even make you do things you would normally not do. At its lowest, it depresses you, makes you feel like you are under ground, worth less than dirt.
The intro with the forest: A dark forest has more meaning than just a dark place that might scare you, to some it also hides you from views of people outside. It can be comforting but most will perceive it as mysterious, dangerous and frightening, not knowing what is in the dark. Nevertheless, he will look for her in there. Seek her out.
Taking it either as comforting or brave to step into the dark to follow her, no matter the danger.
The singing birds are represent a high feeling in love. They do not sing any longer, love is absent.
Ohne dich kann ich nicht sein, ohne dich bin ich auch allein.
To me the most obvious of lines. Unrequited love is to most of us the most brutal of feelings that might end in depression. Who has not experienced this eternal feeling of loneliness in a crowd of people. You are with someone, yet you do not feel him/her.
Only that one significant other can quench this thirst of belonging and this is to be read between the lines. That feeling of desire within all of us, to belong, to be loved unconditionally by that one soulmate. Some of us are lucky, most of us are not.
"Und das Atmen fällt mir ach so schwer"
A feeling of a whole ton of stones on your chest, unquenchable desire, physical pain that reaches down to your stomach.
Lastly, of course, I am only assuming. By no means do I claim to know the real answer but my gut feeling when listening to this song..it is an ode to one woman. That one woman who is gone or has never been there. I like the idea that it is a praise of their band Rammstein itself and also the official video does hint at their deep friendship. Nonetheless most I know perceive it as a love song meant for a woman. Take what you will, to you the most, my friend.
Auf Wiedersehen! -
2TOP RATED
#2 top rated interpretation:(At first, english isn't my mother tongue, therefore sorry for the mistakes...)
I totally agree with the first post, but of course Ohne dich is a Rammstein song and so it's obvious that there might be a second meaning hidden in the lyrics. What do you think about that war is the very second meaning? Here some potential evidences:
"Ich werde in die Tannen gehen
Dahin wo ich SIE zuletzt gesehen."
(I'm going to go into the fir trees
There where I last saw her [them])
With "sie" Till also could mean 3. person plural, his comrades who died on the front line.
"Und der Wald er steht so schwarz und leer"
(And the forest it is so black and empty)
Because everybody's dead
"Ohne dich kann ich nicht sein, Ohne dich"
(Without you I cannot be, Without you)
Without war there is no meaning in his life so he needs it, but with war he's also alone because of the death of his comrades.
"Auf den Ästen in den GRÄBEN"
With "Gräben" Till could mean "Schützengräben" (trenches)
"Ohne dich zähl ich die Stunden ohne dich
Mit dir stehen die Sekunden"
(Without you I count the hours without you
With you the seconds stand still)
When there is no battle, he counts the hours till the next battle begins and when there is a battle the seconds stand still because of the adrenalin, the fear ect.
I think this is the second meaning of the song because I think it really fits. -
3TOP RATED
#3 top rated interpretation:The first stanza to the song is the beginning of a suicide letter. "Ich werde in die Tannen geh'n" could be used as figurative imagery to reinforce the statement of suicide -- leaving a clear area for a darker one (the forest). Obviously, he has lost someone very dear to him, because he keeps repeating 'Ohne dich' (without you). He gives reasons for his choice of suicide in the refrain: "Ohne dich kann ich nicht sein" is the most obvious one, while "Mit dir bin ich auch allein" could be referring to what most people say to a friend who lost someone dear 'He/she will live on inside you'. Last but not least, "Lohnen nicht", which expresses that the seconds that pass without the person he has lost are not worth 'it'. What 'it' is in this case, I don't know, but it would be safe to assume that 'it' is 'worth living'. The second stanza (not including the refrain in this count) is about the process of taking his life. "Auf den Ästen in den Gräben / Ist es nun still und ohne Leben" would mean that he has already taken his life, or has chosen a quiet place to carry on with his plan. "Und das Atmen fällt mich ach so schwer" could be referring to the fact that he is about to die, that he is barely able to breathe anymore. In the end, the last verse before the refrain being "Und die Vögel singen nicht mehr" give the whole song a conclusion, as the silence when birds don't sing is often used to conclude something, even movie scenes. Also, when you see someone die, there is at first a moment of shock, of silence, and that may be portrayed by this silence.
(( Btw, Rammstein wrote loads of ballads ^^ )) -
I started listening to Rammstein since April 2023. Now I am into Ohne Dich and trying to find out the meaning of its lyrics.
First I think it's about love, and how it can be both fullfilling and devastating. Sometimes it can be joy to be with someone, but at the same time it can be bad for you. You long for someone, but with that person near you, you find out that it's actually not working. So you are still "alone".
An anonymous post on this thread stated it's about war. Although I first wanted to dismiss it, it is actually a really good explanation. Men fighting together in the war. The birds that don't sing because of the destruction and explosions. And while in battle, you are with your comrads, but you are also alone, because your loved ones are at home. With your comrads time stands still, but it's not rewarding because you still miss your loved ones at home.
On top of that, the platoon he's in is his band, Rammstein. He can't be without them, but while on tour there are friends and loved ones at home that he misses. Therefor he can sing this song to us fans, during the tour in 2023. He needs us. He cannot be without us. But while on tour, singing to us, and time standing still, he misses the people at home. -
I think "Ohne Dich" by German translation "One Dick" clearly means that Til is ditching his side bitches and is finally going to be faithful to one man, hence "one dick" only.
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I think it’s about a relationship that can’t sustain itself. Falling in love with someone only to realize that you can’t sustain it. The heart break of loving someone who can’t be in a relationship.
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Ich denke auch, dass es sich in dem Song um eine Liebesgeschichte handelt. Die Toten Hosen haben dieses Lied jetzt auch nachgesungen. Campino vermisst diese Frau so sehr, dass er sich ein Leben ohne sie nicht mehr vorstellen kann. Er hat große Sehnsucht nach ihr und wünscht sich nichts mehr, als wieder mit ihr zusammen zu sein.
Doch was man nicht weiß ist, dass die Frau ihn vielleicht auch vermisst und immer noch liebt. Vieleicht sollte er einen Schritt auf diese Frau zugehen und ihr seine Gefühle erneut offenbaren. Möglicherweise gibt es dann doch noch ein Happyend. -
As all lyrics, this is free for interpretation. My understandning of it is related to the official video. Interpreting the lyrics in the light of the video gives a Little more "Rammstein-meaning" into it. I interpret it as being about comradship, effort and that dual feeling between people deeply emotionally involved with each other. To every deeper relation there are two sides (at least) and there is never a single side of it. Still, you are willing to sacrifice alot for that other persons need, wishes, dreams et. c.
As shown in the video "Till" can barely make it up that mountain although it's seemingly one of his dreams. And even though he slows the others down and the mood between them is strained and noot particulary good, the others get him up to the top, where he most likely dies.
I think they got that idea from some real climbers story. -
The song means what they have told in their music video. Fullstop.
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You can refer to a woman a ship and a mountain as her probably more than those three I'm just sayin
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Well, I just think that an alternative interpretation could be a story about drug abuse. I believe that the song really relates to the band - but like all great lyrics - it can be interpreted in various ways.
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It is a sad song. It could mean more than one thing.
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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This song is about a man who has lost a loved one. This could be a girl (wo ich SIE...) This means 'where I saw HER. So, I think this is about a woman, who he loved so dear. She disappeared in the forest and he tries to find her. But she is gone (most likely she's dead). He misses her so much and says that he can't live without her.
He doesn't kill himself, even though some others might think so in the second stanza. He sings about the silence in the lands and it's without life. That's just how he feels it. He feels so lonely without his loved one, that no where is life that could cheer him up.
This is a love song about a loved one missing or even dead. And he expresses the sadness he feels, the deep sadness and lonelyness. -
Ohne dich is about Till singing that "without" the other Rammstein members he "can't be": "Ohne dich Kann Ich nicht sein"........that's the meaning, R+ was passing through a tough time in its members relationship when recording the album reise reise where it comes Ohne dich and so the drummer Schneider said in a makin of a video (mein teil) that they finally found a way to comprehend each other and the band was saved! :) so Ohne dich represents how much big is their friendship and so that they have to be together to continue 'cause the song says "without you I can't be, without you, with you I am also alone..." so Ohne dich is NOT for a girl! is for themselves, R+ shows their strong friendship, that they are united, it's all!
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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Yes that's true. Take a look at the video clip.
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