Henry Rollins goes after "young elitist hipsters” on German TV show
By Brian FairbanksNovember 6th, 2010, 7:56 amComments (11)
Henry Rollins just wanted to take his heroic Iranian friend on a tour through the Cakeshop record store on New York's Lower East Side. He just wanted to make a quick little clip for a German TV show and he really wanted to be left alone. Instead he was attacked (verbally assaulted, for God's sake) by his fans and their love for him... and that could not be condoned.
"Get In The Van!" a pleasant and harmless young woman shouts, referring to the Rollins autobiography and bestseller. Sure she shouldn't have interrupted his TV taping with this tossed-off one-liner, but she wasn't trying to mock him either. Watch what happened next:
If you're a Rollins fan, as I am, you probably cringed at the part where he rattled off all those Grammys and whatnot for the audiobook version of Get In The Van.
Commentarium (11 Comments)
I saw this clip the other day and thought it was old news from 2006. Is it really that old?
I'm a Rollins fan too, but I really couldn't make heads or tails of this incident. The only thing I could think of was that Henry assumed an actual fan would walk up and engage him in polite conversation, instead of just shouting the title to one of his better-known works. It does seem a bit silly that Rollins said something to the effect of "I knew something like that was going to happen when we walked in there," and went on to get angry/confrontational anyway.
Yeah - Rollins is a funny cat. I'm a fan, grew up listening to his music, reading his poetry - which almost all boil down to his variations on how he is the most righteous mf'r to walk the earth since Caine. I
I read some of his stuff recently and was exhausted - his writing is stripped down to utilitarian (early caveman) phrasing, "Ate meal. Felt good. Lifted small car out front of house. Prefer to lift apathetic, shoegazing people who move like sheep. Will destroy every one of them I see tomorrow!".
In interviews he's admitted: Confrontation is my Vitamin C. So, I think, he really seeks it out in situations, like, in this clip. But I found it cringe worthy as he's standing there, trying to draw out a sacrificial lamb, then realizing no one's gonna take the bait, parades his Iranian friend as an example of righteous, meaningful living which everyone should aspire to. It's like a lecture from a parent.
I like Henry, but I think he's best when he can get out of his battle gear and let himself be funny.
Well put Charlie. Let's see him walk the rice paper.
It wasn't like the girl yelled out one thing and he swooped over and screamed at her, she kept yelling things and he tried to let it blow over. She kept it up and (to me) it seemed like he was trying to tell her she was being rude (but in that special Rollins way)
Most likely, the girl wanted to provoke him so she and her riot grrrrrrl band could write a song about how much of a meanie he was. I've met him before and he goes out of his way to treat people nicely but if you try to come across with an attitude, then you get what you ask for.
I think he was being the elitist wanker. I like his music, but fuck. It's like he was complaining that they're judging him for being mainstream while criticising the girl for recognising and appreciating his acclaimed product. Make up your mind, Rollins. And: P.S. we're all against you.
The original alternajock. Henry sucks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_3g4QPojMc
This is typical Henry Rollins. He's been calling kids out for their pretension since the beginning of his career (check out the video for a better example). That girl was clearly expecting him to come over and use his celebrity power to chat her up. He wasn't biting and tried to draw attention to the fact she was being rude. Props to Henry for maintaining his standards. Think about it: how many musicians would do that?
The first video of Rollins yelling at a couple of tattooed women was just fine with me. That second video was pretty fucked. I expect more of Rollins.
It's Rollins. He's a radically different musician that has lived a life unrecognizable to most people of my generation (I was born in 89 so go ahead and pass over my comments). When people think of him nowadays without any reference for his career in all aspects they boil him down to, as was said earlier, an alternajock. Rollins is fucked up, no doubt, but he has also dealt with a lot of issues in his life and seems to be tired of it all.
Isn't that yelling girl that worst bartender at that snobby post-punk bar, Second Chance?