Even before the case has come to court, the allegations have had other repercussions. Lindemann’s publisher, Kiepenheuer & Witsch, has dropped him from its list, even though it had no problem publishing his most notorious poem, “When You Sleep,” three years ago. Angry protesters have smashed the windows of the Rammstein office in Berlin. Some people think the case will lead to the group’s breakup.

It does not look particularly good that the group immediately fired the woman who allegedly recruited girls in “row zero,” even as Rammstein’s members denied any knowledge of abuses at after-show parties. There have been no more rows zero, or even parties after recent performances.

There are perfectly good reasons for deploring Rammstein’s act, just as there are good reasons why postwar German taboos should not be dismantled so lightly, even if only in a heavy-metal burlesque. Perhaps Kiepenheuer & Witsch should have paused before publishing a poem about a rape fantasy. But the question remains whether the art should be banned because of the behavior of its creator. Here there is room for doubt.

If the accusations against Lindemann prove to be true, he should pay the penalty. But that is no reason why people should stop listening to his music. One can criticize Rammstein’s theater. I am in no hurry to go to a Rammstein concert myself. But much of what should not be allowed in life should be allowed in art. I am not convinced that banning fantasies is the best way to protect society from the acts of certain fantasists.

Ian Buruma is the author, most recently, of The Collaborators: Three Stories of Deception and Survival in World War II (Penguin Press, 2023).

Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2023.

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