This all makes for a great read until it switches from prose to journal, the journal made by the younger, highly volatile, fragile and depressed Rollins of the '80s. Also, much violence and aggresion is often caused by the Flag's oldest enemy, the police (or as Rollins calls them almost without fail, 'the pigs'). Not only does it show us what some believe is the golden age of Black Flag, it is fat-free and full of great anecdotes, like him and the legendary roadie, Mugger, eating Jello Biafra's food in a restaurant ('he didn't seem to mind at all.')Īt first, when the horror sets in, it's shocking: The descriptions of Mohawked, pea-brained punk rockers spitting on them and Gene October, of all people, taking the piss out of them on their tour of the UK is compellingly horrible, and the situation seems to get worse as poverty begins to mean no food rather than simply little money. This first part, made up of memories interpreted in '94, is the best part. A quick move to Hermosa Beach and he's full-time frontman. Him and his good friend Ian MacKaye, future Minor Threat and Fugazi frontman, were taking in bands like Black Flag, the Damned and Bad Brains and through an amazing twist of fate Rollins is induced into the former. The book gets off to a good start: There's a dedications bit (most notably to Joe Cole, Rollins' best friend who advised him to write the book) and then an introduction of his life in the Washington, D.C. So what we have here is the history of Black Flag, 1981-1986, now with added Rollins! way, not the My Chemical Romance way), and he kept a journal and notes throughout. From 1981 to 1986 Henry fronted Black Flag, the constantly touring pioneers of hardcore and key force in alternative rock (I mean in the Dinosaur Jr. He's been criticized as extreme left, consrvative, whiny, unfunny and more, but he has a lot of fans which he completely dedicates himself to, and I mean completely: The man is almost always working on something.

Henry Rollins is, of course, the spoken-word performer, writer, fourth frontman of Black Flag, frontman of his own band (the obviously named Henry Rollins Band) and possibly the most controvertial firgure in punk history.

Rollins get in the van