10 Questions with Henry Rollins – Interview
Henry Rollins is one of the hardest working men in entertainment, period. If you’ve ever heard Henry talk about his typical (read: insane) schedule, work ethic and DIY attitude toward pretty much everything, then you know he’s always working on something. Always.
When we spoke with Henry in Detroit at the end of November 2008, we asked if we could get a quick interview with him. He said, “Sure, if you don’t mind waiting. Send me your questions.” Naturally, we said, “Sure! No problem.” and we waited. Then we waited. Then we waited a bit more.
After an historical election, the holidays, the new year, lots of travel, a few speaking gigs, the passing of one radio show and the birth of a new one, a couple new books in the works and some acting gigs, Mr. Rollins had a scant 8 seconds to catch his breath and answer our questions. Well, some of our questions. We sent him 38 questions in all; he had time for 10. These are the ones that were selected. Enjoy.
STI: What can you tell us about A Preferred Blur, A Mad Dash and the one you recently alluded to that will be out years from now?
HR: APB and AMD are travel/journal books from 2007 and 2008 respectively. The other book is photos and essays and is in early stages of production. APB will be out in April 2009 and AMD will be out in November of 2009 if all goes to plan.
STI: If you had your way, what books would you make mandatory in high school or college curricula?
HR: George Orwell’s 1984, The Stranger by Albert Camus, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, Dostoyevsky’s Crime And Punishment. Those would be good for high school. For college, hell, I don’t know what to do with college students. The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism by Naomi Klein and Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic by Chalmers Johnson maybe.
STI: The music industry blames file sharing and/or piracy for declining sales. Do you see that as a major contributor, or is the current music business model simply not adapting to the times and technology fast enough? What other factors do you see contributing to its decline?
HR: I think the major factor in the couldn’t-come-soon-enough decline of the major label industry is greed. Greed and underestimating the intelligence of their patrons.File sharing has had an effect, certainly. Why do people share files? Maybe because you put out a CD for $19.99 and two songs on it are good and the rest is so-so because you told the band to hurry up already. When you make art into an industry, everyone will suffer. I am sorry about all the people who lost their jobs but this thing had to end.
STI: Vinyl has risen from the dead in a major way over the past few years. In 2008, sales of LPs were up by 89%, from 990,000 in ’07 to 1.88 million this past year. What do you think has sparked this resurrection? What albums do you think sound better on vinyl than CD or other digital media?
HR: I think a lot of people enjoy the hands-on aspect of an LP. The artwork is more visible as well, always cool. That could be a part of it. What albums sound better on vinyl? ALL OF THEM.
STI: Are you still working with Paul Rieckhoff and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America? On a related note, have you recently been on any USO tours and are you scheduled for any upcoming visits this year?
HR: I am waiting for IAVA to finalize a video they are doing as I will be supplying voice over for it. USO has asked if I will do a tour later in the year. I will check [my] schedule and see if I can accommodate.
STI: If there was only one thing you could make the American people understand about what you’ve seen on your many tours to visit the troops, what would it be?
HR: That these are fantastic men and women and that Iraq and Afghanistan are a fool’s mission.
STI: When visiting other countries, what’s the most common thing people express to you now that Barack Obama is in office and the reign of the Bush Regime is over?
HR: An incredible amount of happiness and relief. I was just in Mali and people were very excited about [our new] president. This is the only country I have been to since Obama won the election though. I will be doing some travel this year and will find out more when I get on the road. I was out and about in the world quite a bit leading up to the election though and people were very hopeful about Obama winning.
STI: Some say President Obama’s biggest challenge over the coming years will be the economy, others say universal health care, some claim our foreign policy. What do you think his biggest challenge over the next four years will be?
HR: The economy. Its state will dictate what happens in all other areas.
STI: If nothing else, what do you think he should absolutely accomplish during his first term?
HR: Out of Iraq, out of Afghanistan, close Gitmo, close black site prisons, stop all torture of “detainees.” Talks with Iran, China, North Korea, Cuba.
STI: You cover America’s dependency on foreign oil and relying on countries that “hate our guts” quite a bit as well as getting off our collective asses and doing something about it, ie. solar panels, electric cars, wind energy, etc. Is it fair to ask what Henry Rollins is doing for his part? For example, do you and Heidi [May] kick it in a solar-powered office or does the Bon JoviMobile run on second-hand fryer grease like Willie Nelson’s tour bus?
HR: Of course it’s fair. I mostly do all the normal things, I light the room I am in, rarely use heat, never use AC, drive as little as possible. I shower with the water off except for soaping up and rinsing off. I am in process of moving and have not considered putting solar panels on a place I am hoping to leave. If I can get somewhere else to live, I will pursue that. I have never pursued an alt. energy tour bus. I pay my carbon offset, although I don’t know for sure what good it does, I am hopeful.
Henry Rollins: http://21361.com
