Review: Lana Harris
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Henry Rollins, ex front man of punk rock bands Black Flag and Rollins Band, is a charismatic man. He has the presence and easy manner that comes from half a lifetime on stage but this is tempered by the time spent on his more austere pursuits of observation, self imposed isolation and a hell of a lot of reading. Tonight he’s solo on stage, sharing the contents of his mind in the Brisbane Powerhouse for the first of three Brisbane shows – two added to the bill due to popular demand, despite the fact that Rollins has travelled to Australia no less than 27 times in the last 20 years. |
Rollins works, moves, looks like a boxer. Short staccato sentences are tapped out relentlessly, full stops after every syllable working the ear drums of the audience. This is utilitarian prose: make the audience think, laugh, empathise; uplift and unsettle them. Do not waste a single letter. The rags mimic the approach– close cropped hair, plain black fitted t-shirt (that reveals he’s still in great shape), drill pants and sneakers – a perfectly functional outfit. There are no breaks – not for Rollins, not for us. One hundred and sixty five minutes of verbal onslaught.
Within five minutes of opening, Rollins’ machine gun mouth has fired off direct quotes from the American constitution and the first amendment (Rollins professes admiration of Abraham Lincoln) as he expresses angst, ire and pride in the American Way. But Rollins is as comfortable telling his audience about politics as he is relating stories about punk rock shows. As the night progresses, the topics get lighter and the laughter gets longer. Rollins is a natural storyteller – he weaves his stories, taking side turns into alleys for quick giggles and then moving expertly back to the bigger picture. Serious messages, outrage and real pain at the state of the world are eased into the psyche by the laughter breaks along the way.
Rollins might be angry, but he admits he’s grown out of cynicism because it’s lazy. His outbursts are critical but there’s hope for change at the corners of the smirk. It’s refreshing to hear someone who can criticise without pessimism and without claiming to be perfect. He doesn’t have all the answers but he has an idea about what’s right and its equality for everyone and the eradication of stupidity born of ignorance (stupidity that comes from a lack of situational awareness, aka clumsiness, is energetically embraced). Rollins believes in the importance of first hand experience as much as book reading to cultivate knowledge, and he doesn’t discriminate between lofty and base pursuits. He speaks of his appearances on TV shows as well as relating stories of recent travels that were aimed at increasing his understanding of nations maligned in the US media. For the latter, he set out to deliberately invoke his empathy and he aims to raise it in his audiences.
Rollins intelligence, anti materialism and openness to experience are all exposed in his word slinging. Rollins has no dependents (no 9-5 job, no kids, no wife, no mention of a dog) to narrow his focus and his roaming. He has abstained and instead cultivated curiosity, questions and Socratic lines of thinking. Along the way he acquired some wisdom. He donates that wisdom to people who have stopped paying attention themselves: his insights come from having time to think and the freedom to explore that most people don’t take past their twenties. Rollins makes no apologies for not forging a steady job and nuclear familia bonds. He could not be who he is with them. He is driven by a different kind of obligation –one of integrity rather than responsibility, and one where boredom is the worst crime – boredom being the antithesis of curiosity.
This was not the show to see if you were unprepared to question how you were living your life – and answer honestly. Rollins’ insight and penetrating self and world examinations demand the same from his audience. You have been warned.
Henry Rollins – Frequent Flyer Tour @ The Astor Theatre, Mount Lawley WA on 01 May 2010
Henry Rollins – Frequent Flyer Tour @ The Astor Theatre, Mount Lawley WA on 02 May 2010