October 10, 1998 17:06

SMART! ALEC

Riot boys and girls join [a]Rammstein[/a] debate and play scorching gigs in London and New York...

Atari Teenage Riot have joined the controversey surrounding German compatriots Rammstein[/url].

Speaking to MTV last weekend at their New York CMJ gig, ATR's Alec Empire gave his thoughts on Germany's other extreme metal exports.

"What was really bad was that in Germany, Rammstein is successful for all the wrong reasons. I think they're not a fascist band, but I think that in Germany there's a lot of misunderstanding and that's why they sell a lot of records," he said.

related news
Rammstein deny Nazi sympathies reviews
CD: The Future Of War
Live: Highbury Garage tour dates
Click for the NME gig guide[/url]

"I'm still waiting for them to make a statement. You can't just make a Leni Riefenstahl video and say that it's just a joke. My grandfather died in a concentration camp and for me that's not a joke at all."

When Atari Teenage Riot played London Highbury Garage on October 30, our reporter said: "I have seen the future of rock'n'roll and it is a gibbering, snot-dribbling, anarkozombie moron!"

Click here[/url] to read what else Steven Wells had to say about Atari Teenage Riot's Garage gig.

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