Before the Chop IV (and After): LA Weekly Writing (and More), 2012—2018 by Henry Rollins

(pb; 2018: nonfiction/media column collection)

Review

Chop IV continues in the thematic vein of its first three volumes, with Rollins writing about his love of listening to vinyl, travel and learning, as well as the joys and downfalls of spoken word gigs. He also, of course, geeks out about his favorite bands and friends (e.g., Iggy Pop) and shares blunt, smart observations about getting older in a society that does not value aging, nor the its (hopefully) attendant wisdom.

Of the four volumes, this is the least joyous and fun, but that is not Rollins’s fault, nor is it a reflection of the quality of his writing. It reflects, rather, the times: like so many things in the now, it is tainted with our current US President and his effect on─it seems─everything. This a minor caveat, at worst, for those of us seeking a respite from the daily toxicity oozing from the White House. Or, to put it another way: Chop IV is worth owning despite its inevitable reflections on our current societal climate.

Henry & Glenn Forever and Ever: The Completely Ridiculous Edition by Tom Neely

(hb; 2017: graphic novel, humor)

From the back cover

“The greatest love story ever told has finally been released in graphic novel form, featuring 20 short stories about the domestic life of ‘Henry’ and ‘Glenn’ and their neighbors ‘Daryl’ and ‘John.’ Glenn deals with issues with his mother while Henry, ‘a loud guy with a good work ethic,’ shows his darker side and indifference to a fan as he drinks black coffee and bonds with Glenn over their distaste for their own bands. These are two men who truly suffer best together.

“This book collects four serialized comics, add even more never-before-published pages than the previous collective edition, and will have a spiffy hardcover. This collection does not include Henry & Glenn Adult Activity and Coloring Book.”

Review

Mature fans of Henry Rollins and Glenn Danzig who have a silly, non-homophobic sense of humor may get a kick out of these true-to-the-title “ridiculous” adventures that the two men embark upon, often with help from their mischievous, satanic neighbors Daryl [Hall] and John [Oates]. A lot of artists submitted work to this anthology, so the artwork varies from really good to really bad, as do some of the brief storylines (for the works that have a storyline). I enjoyed Henry & Glenn a lot, but I would suggest borrowing it from a library or picking it up for a cheap price if you have not read it yet. This is great stuff, if you are open-minded and do not mind being silly about homoerotic, satanic rock stars.

Before the Chop III: LA Weekly Articles, 2014–2016 by Henry Rollins

(pb; 2017: nonfiction)

Review

Like previous Chop collections, the articles in this third volume read like tightly edited versions of Rollins’s spoken word shows: blunt, provocative, smart, self-effacing, humorous and enthusiastic about stuff he likes (listening to music on vinyl; acting and media gigs; traveling the world as often as possible; etc.). Underlining Rollins’s recollections and observations is a sense of upbeat wisdom regarding restraint and knowing one’s place in the world, even as we try to improve it.

This is an excellent collection, one worth owning.

A Mad Dash by Henry Rollins

(pb; 2009: nonfiction / journal -- full title: A Mad Dash: Introspective Exhortations and Geographical Considerations. Journal sequel to A Preferred Blur.)

Review:

Mad, like A Grim Detail, is a blunt, intense and occasionally funny kick-in-the-brain read. Anyone who's familiar with Rollins's media-diverse and prolific work may find themselves thinking I remember him talking about that. Those readers who aren't familiar with his work (and are not angry about his tough-minded, global-political mindset) may find themselves jolted into a new way of thinking.

The journal entries in Mad span from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2008. This time out his trips and musings center around his visits to Vietnam, Burma, Ireland and other countries, as well as his feelings about Bush II's presidency, the second Iraq war and his ongoing struggle with depression, made worse by a friend's 1991 murder.

This book could have been edited better -- Rollins reiterates his tired-of-people/want-to-do-the-best-shows-I-can feelings a few times too many. That said, this is a journal and those reiterations, for some readers, may further add to the sense of continuity of Mad.

While Mad is not Rollins's best work, it is still worth owning, because even less-than-perfect Rollins product is often better and more provocative than others' best writing.

Before the Chop II: LA Weekly Articles 2013 - 2014 by Henry Rollins

(pb; 2015: nonfiction)

From the back cover:

"How do you sell a book like this? It's like offering someone gum that has previously been chewed. Almost all of the material in Before the Chop II  has been published in the LA Weekly. You can probably go online and find it at the best possible price. How dare the 'writer' go slouching towards the trough with the audacity to recycle mere 'content' and slap a price on it? It is a damn outrage is what is it is! The hubris is bristling, the nest feathering obvious and repellent, the self-delusion total. Self-absorbed, much? Running for Congress, perhaps?

". . . Well, maybe we could say that these are the pieces the way they were intended to be read? That all put together, make a handy resource for those who don't have time to read them as they stagger into existence every week. Yes!

"Let's go with that. These are the versions before they were sent to finishing school to be refined and taught to keep their eyes and ears open and their mouths shut. This is the raw and 'real' stuff, which also describes the artwork of a three year old. . ."


Review:

Like the first Before the Chop collection, the articles in this second volume read like tightly edited versions of Rollins' spoken word shows: blunt, provocative, smart, self-effacing, humorous and enthusiastic about stuff he likes (music, especially listening to vinyl; touring as often as possible; etc.).  Mixed in with Rollins' recollections - musical, personal and sometimes political - is a sense of upbeat wisdom regarding and stemming from restraint and knowing one's place in the world, which we share with others who disagree with us (as individuals).

This is an excellent read, one worth owning. Followed by Before the Chop III: LA Weekly, Articles 2014 -- 2016.

A Grim Detail by Henry Rollins

(oversized pb; 2014: nonfiction / memoir)


From the back cover:

"A Grim Detail shoulders the anchor, drags it onward from the end of 2008 and then hurls into the ground in 2010. A world tour, two documentaries and journeys that include North Korea, South Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Mongolia and many others are contained herein. 'Oh no, not another one!' was said or implied by almost everyone involved in the making of this book. Actually, no -- it was all of us. After three on and off years of proofreading and editing, A Grim Detail became the kid no one wanted to play with. Don't laugh. I was that kid, and I am this book, well, you know what I mean.

"But then, in the early days of 2014, work on A Grim Detail concluded. The relief was total, the contempt incalculable, the ridicule to come, too painful too imagine.

"Now, the damn thing is all yours.

"Have a good cringe and thank you for everything.

" - Henry Rollins"

Review:

Blunt, funny, angry and admirable in it intent, Grim is an intense, kick-in-the-brain journal read. Anyone who's familiar with Rollins' media-diverse and prolific work may find themselves nodding to themselves and thinking I remember him talking about that, and those readers who aren't familiar with his work (and aren't angry about his tough-minded, global-political mindset) may find themselves jolted into a new way of thinking.

Rollins' work is at times heartbreaking: he visits the site of the 1984 Bhopal Disaster (which happened in Madhya Pradesh, India), Vietnam and other politically and socially "hot" areas that most Westerners -- journalists included -- aren't visiting, to see first-hand the effects of these disasters, how it's affected those who were there (as well as their descendants). Other countries he visited are written about in a lighter tone.

Of course, as with all Rollins' work, there's a bit of self-deprecation, outrage (a pivotal event in his life is the unsolved 1991 murder of his friend Joe Cole) and the struggle for clarity -- social and personal -- that many of us, underneath all our layers of talk and other bullcrap, also strive for.

I cannot recommend this work enough. While it is not an light read it is a waste-no-words important book that could easily change some lives in a way other Western-culture books won't. Own this, already.

Before the Chop: LA Weekly Articles 2011 - 2012 by Henry Rollins

(pb; 2013: nonfiction)

From the back cover:

"The writer, now a but a shell of his former self, sits down at his desk.  He swipes the empty cough syrup bottles, subpoenas, rejection letters and other detritus to the floor to make space.  He frisks himself and finds a pen.  It is time to work.  There is a deadline.  An editor waiting.  One thousand words must be evicted from this ransacked mind and committed to the page.  One thousand words!  The weight of the Damoclean sword hanging over the writer's head tests the strength of the single horse hair that keeps the blade heeding the demands of gravity.  The writer picks up the pen. . . and puts it down again.  The blank page stares back silently screaming for content.  The writer picks up the pen one more time. . . it feels like it weighs ten pounds.  In his younger days the writer effortlessly grabbed all the low hanging fruit and filled composition notebooks with oceans of ink  As the years passed, the writer ascended to the higher branches until one day, all the fruit was gone.  The writer was now at the very top of the tree. . . with nothing.  It was around this time, the writer got a job at the L.A. Weekly.  One thousand words a week?  No problem!  Actually, a big problem.  Yet somehow, the forces of desperation, a fear of failure and a pathetic desire to somehow "stay in the game" drives him on!  The writer rips it from his guts and other places, week after week.  How does the writer do it?  Simple.  The writer has nothing else going on.  Read this book and you will discover just how obvious this is.  I am so glad to be done.

"- Name withheld by request"


Review:

The collected articles in Chop read like tightly edited versions of Rollins' spoken word shows: blunt, provocative, smart, self-effacing, humorous and enthusiastic about stuff he likes (music, especially listening to vinyl; touring as often as possible; etc.).  Mixed in with Rollins' recollections - musical, personal and sometimes political - is a sense of upbeat wisdom regarding and stemming from restraint and knowing one's place in the world, which we share with others who disagree with us (as individuals).

Excellent read, worth owning. Followed by Before the Chop II: LA Weekly Articles 2013 - 2014.

Do I Come Here Often? by Henry Rollins

(pb; 1996: non-fiction)

From the back cover:

" 'I believe that one defines himself by re-invention. To not be like your parents. To not be like your friends. To be yourself. To cut yourself out of stone.'

"With the addictive intensity, irreverence and humor for which he is renown, Henry Rollins interviews and writes about some of his musical heroes, as well as laying himself bare in his private journals.

"Discover exactly what he thought of Jane's Addiction, Nine Inch Nails and [Johnny Mnemonic co-star] Ice-T as they journeyed across the US together on the 1991 Lollapalooza Tour with the frustration of playing in front of indifferent crowds, dealing with groupies and the daily trials of life on the road. Meet Rollins the music fan, as he explains how David Lee Roth inspired him to get into music, what it was like to interview greats like John Lee Hooker and Isaac Hayes, why Roky Erickson is unlike anyone you will ever meet and what happened the day he met 'Killer' Jerry Lee Lewis.

"Essential reading for both fans and the uninitiated alike."


Review:

Artists largely come into their brilliance by two routes. One route is through cleverness, cutting one-liners or, by extension, collections of well-set-up/well-acted one-liners (think Oscar Wilde or comedian Robin Williams).

The second route is through sheer force of personal expression. It's not an immediate quick-hit high, but a building-up-to-something-great talent/situation. The artist talks sincerely, passionately about something he or she cares about, and as a result of that point-minded passion, something transformative -- dare I utter the phrase real-life magic -- is born.

Rollins has often achieved brilliance via the second route. He's been doing spoken word shows for over twenty-five years, toured and worked musically with various entities and people (largely with Black Flag and Rollins Band), become a compelling writer, and acted (often in a tongue-in-cheek, dark-humored way) in notable films, done TV work (his current talk show, The Henry Rollins Show, is shown on the IFC Channel)... The list goes on and on; the man has been working hard for thirty plus years on various media fronts, with no sign of letting up.

This is one of Rollins finer efforts. Never mind the raging, often-awkward (but undeniably honest) poetry he started off publishing (on his 2.13.61 label) years ago, this is "the sh*t," as it's said these days. The date of the writings extend from "2.13.87" (Rollins' twenty-sixth birthday, privately -- now publicly -- recounted in the journal-essay "Happy Birthday") to 1996, when he went to Grenada, Spain to play an equipment-flawed gig (the aural feedback on the speakers was horrendous). In this book-final essay Rollins ruminates about the hell of flying in commercial airplanes, the joys of working with filmmaker David Lynch (Rollins had a role in Lynch's Lost Highway), the paranoia of ex-bandmate Greg "the Ginn" Ginn, his love of the Addams Family, and the crappiness of certain musicians (namely Sting and The Offspring, whom Rollins describes as "this weak band playing this cute, pale imitation of fifteen year old music").

Worth your time, this. You may not agree with everything Rollins says, but the force and plain-spoken charm of his words cannot honestly be denied.