Henry Rollins interview
HUCK talks to the former Black Flag frontman, spoken word artist, writer, publisher, actor, activist, radio DJ and all round DIY hero about touring his words around the world.
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HUCK: What can people expect from your spoken word tour in the new year?
Henry: By the time I get to the UK, I will have been pretty far and wide and hopefully some of those destinations will have some stories to bear. So far, it’s been very good for new things. It will be a very widespread area of topics, there’s a lot happening at the moment and a long time since I’ve been to England.
How do you decide to go on tour?
It’s basically every other year. In 2008, I was out almost all year. This year was and will be spent gathering new material for stories onstage. The preparation for the tour is as involved and taxing as the tour itself. Basically, my life is all about the show. I am either doing it or getting material for it. It’s great but it takes up a good deal of my time. It keeps me on the move a good part of the time. I am in Jakarta in Indonesia at the moment.
What preparation do you do?
Travel and immersion as best I can in the places I go. I have come to the conclusion that the best stuff is out in the world, when you just walk up on it. The further out I go, the better it seems to get.
Is the show scripted or improvised? Or a bit of both?
There’s not a lot of either. I am telling stories of what I saw, etc., so I can’t really improvise that. I get into a groove on tour and often tell some of the same stories night to night and they start to get their own thing to where they become like songs.
Do you ever get nervous and mess up?
I don’t really get nervous. I am one of those desperate types who actually likes being onstage. I get things wrong on some nights, acronyms, chronological stuff but nothing too severe. It’s always easy enough to get back on track.
Who do you think comes out to the shows? Who are your diatribes for?
I guess people who like me and like what I’m saying too. I guess it’s why you go see one band and not another. I talk to whoever is in front of me, like anyone else on a stage.
Why are you travelling at the moment? Where has been good, and not so good?
I travel as often as I can. It’s where I get my information. I think it’s good for me. Saudi Arabia was good, Brunei was a little tame. I have some other destinations coming up that should be pretty interesting.
Shepard Fairey is guest hosting your radio show. What do you like about him?
I like his work and I really like the reason he does his work. I think Shepard is an extremely interesting guy. If you read the introduction to his book Supply & Demand, he lays out why he does what he does. It’s very cool. We have worked together on a few different projects. This will be the second time he has done my show. I think it will be great.
What artists/musicians are doing exciting cool things in your opinion at the moment?
I think all the different outlets of Vice Cooler; Hawnay Troof, XBXRX, VC4, etc., are all really good. I pay attention to labels as much as artists; Kill Rockstars, American Tapes, Dischord, Teenbeat, Gods Of Tundra - labels like that.
You do so much stuff, do you ever feel like it's unmanageable?
Not really. It is pretty much all I do though. I am always working on something. I have a long time to wait around in some airports tomorrow so I will get some work done there. I write a lot on planes as well. I find ways to keep the thing going.
What, if any, is the consistent thread running through all your different projects?
Well, yes. Me. Past that, I don’t know. There is probably a consistent level of anger coursing through what I do.
Do you ever worry that once your words enter the public domain they will become misinterpreted and misunderstood?
No. I can’t control any of that, so I just try to be as clear as I can.
Some people follow what you say like gospel, does that put a lot of pressure on you?
No. It does make me strive for clarity though and that’s a good thing I think.
Apathy is pretty shit, but you care about everything. Does it ever get you down?
Well, I don’t know about that. I think one needs a good degree of live and let live to get through this world. The things I do care about, sure, I get angry or down at times, absolutely. It’s a fine line to walk, trying to be part of a solution and not having a life. I guess what bugs me the most on a global scale is the same bastards keep getting away with the same stuff decade after decade. If you read editorials in newpapers 100 years ago, some of them could be printed today and make sense in sentiment. None of this stuff is new and I guess that’s what makes me the maddest.
What's the first thing that comes into your head associated with these things:
Obama
Get out of Afghanistan.
The Environment
Save it or it dies.
Punk
Is where you find it.
Poetry
Is mostly written by those who muddy their waters to make them appear deep (that’s not mine).
Gay rights
Are human rights.
Love
Overused. I love pizza.
Visit the Henry Rollins website for details on his upcoming spoken word tour.
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Henry Rollins interview (text) by Shelley Lee Jones is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
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