Listen to the new OFF! album here: http://www.spin.com/articles/hear-offs-ferocious-self-titled-lp

You joined your first band S.O.A in 1980 and have been involved in music/bands since. How do you find it singing/writing lyrics. Is it something that came naturally or do you feel you have progressed over the years?

I always felt natural onstage and with a band or on my own. That being the case, that doesn’t necessarily make me a “natural”. I don’t know how I came off to people. I always went by what felt like the right thing to do. However that came out, that’s what it was. I think it’s up to the audience to see whether it connects or not. I have tried, over the years; to be more clear to any audience I am in front of. I think I have gotten better at that.

You joined Black Flag in 1981. How do you feel about Black Flag now? Do you still enjoy the music? Do you have a favorite period of being in that band?

I honestly don’t feel anything about the band or being in it. It was a long time ago and after the band was over, I had written my first solo song within an hour of the band’s demise. I really don’t wait around, hang around or rest on previous achievements. I occasionally play one of their songs on the radio but never anything with me singing. Several years ago, we utilized Black Flag songs to raise money for the West Memphis Three’s defence fund and it was interesting to go back and sing those songs again live. They are good songs but they are old and living in the past isn’t interesting to me. I have no favourite period. I do think that the most powerful line up was the 1984 tour line up with Kira and Bill.

How do you feel about the continuing popularity of Black Flag?

The same way I feel about the continuing popularity of Jimi Hendrix’s music. It’s cool that the music has meaning to someone who perhaps wasn’t around when it was first generated. It’s good that the music has some longevity. So, in an altruistic sense, I am glad that I am part of something that is of use. Past that, I don’t feel anything about it. I guess one of the things that makes it hard to think of those times with much fondness is that Greg Ginn has been so awful to all the bands on SST. He literally doesn’t pay royalties or send statements of sales to any band members of any SST bands. For instance, I have never received a royalty check or sales statement ever. I have no idea what I am owed. I am fortunate in that I have done very well for myself and don’t care about Ginn and his corrupt, immoral, weak, cowardly and illegal conduct. However, some other members of Black Flag are facing some challenges in these turbulent times and an accurate and honest accounting to them would be nice, if not the least he could do.

After Black Flag you formed the Rollins Band. The Rollins Band was musically different from you’re previous bands. Was this a planned decision to try something new or a result of the combination of people involved in the band?

It was the latter. We got together and what came out of it was what you heard.

How did it feel to achieve commercial success with the Rollins Band?

It gave us more opportunity to play more shows, which was all it ever was about for me, to do the thing, as it were. It wasn’t about how much money was to be made. You might be surprised to find out how little bands care about the money compared to how much they care about making good music, playing good shows and having a great audience. Beyond that, I was always too busy working on the next thing to think about success. The shows and the level of commitment involved with being a true international act took up most of the waking hours.    

Do you have a favourite period of the Rollins Band?

I think the band peaked in 1991-1992.

Is the Rollins Band now defunct or is there a possibility you may revive it one day?

No.

Asides from music you also occasionally act. What was your last role and do you have any upcoming roles?

I did an episode in a TV show that got cancelled. It was the guy from Mad About You. I am forgetting his name at the moment (*Paul Reiser). Nice guy. I did it because they offered and the studio was down the street from my house. That was about a year ago. I have been doing documentary work for National Geographic lately. I have no other acting jobs planned.

You also have your own publishing company 2 13 61. What has been happening with that recently? And are there any current future plans?

My new book just came out. It’s called Occupants and it’s a book of photographs and writing from all over the world. The next book will be out in about a year. It will be journals and travel writing from the years 2009 and 2010.

What happened to The Henry Rollins show? Will it ever come back?

IFC took their money and went elsewhere. That’s what happens when it’s not your money. I thought we did good work on that. It was a good four years. No plans to do it again although I would like to.

What have you been doing recently with your spoken word/talking shows? Are any UK shows planned?

I did about 50 of those this year. Next year will be about 180. Tour starts in UK, tickets on sale now.

What’s next for Henry Rollins?

2012 - 2013 Long March Tour.

Anything else you’d like to add?

Don’t waste time.

Hi Kira! For those who don’t know, tell us a little about yourself.

Born in Connecticut - lived there til I was eight. Lived in the Caribbean (an island called Curacao) from eight to eleven. Then I lived in Northern california for two years, but Los Angeles most of my life.  My father devoted much of his life to underwater photography, so I was introduced to scuba diving at an early age.  I have one sibling, and older brother named Paul who plays keyboards, sings, produces and engineers … I went to UCLA and have worked as a software developer and sound editor aside from my musical endeavors. 

You’re mostly known for playing bass in Black Flag but were you in many bands prior? And did you always play bass?

I started on classical piano when I was six. I quit at eleven. I picked up the bass at fourteen and have been dedicated to becoming a good bass player ever since.  My first band was called Waxx when I was sixteen. My brother played drums (we didn’t think keyboards were very punk rock) … it was at the Whisky a Go Go. I was also in The Visitors, The Monsters, Sexsick, and Twisted Roots as well as helping out here and there in other bands … I joined Back Flag in the fall of 1983.  

You joined Black Flag in 1983 and stayed until 1985. What were the highlights of being in that band?

Hmmm the professionalism and work ethic appealed to me a great deal, even before I was in the band. They were my favorite band when I joined them. The opportunity to play for people outside of LA was also attractive. The powerful nature of the music when we were firing on all cylinders. Getting to hear other bands outside of LA.  Recording the records. 

Do you have a favorite Black Flag song or album?

I am always torn between two records - The Process of Weeding Out and In My Head. The Process of Weeding Out involves such a challenge holding down the fort while Greg and Bill explore the edges and try to push the cart off the rails (to me anyways) … In My Head was going to be an instrumental record, but Henry wrote lyrics for it and in that way it works better (to me) because he is expressing himself instead of interpreting someone else’s thoughts and feelings. 

How do you feel about the continuing popularity of Black Flag? Do you find it strange that the band is probably more popular now than when they were actually together?

I would not have guessed back then that average folks that I would meet at work or whatever would know about Black Flag.  It seemed quite underground and obscure back then. My theory is that bands like Nirvana and The Red Hot Chili Peppers created some of the notoriety by getting famous and then talking about their influences. That expanded interest from those who were only interested in the underground and obscure to more mainstream folks, but more from a notoriety standpoint in my opinion. Many people have heard OF Black Flag but not nearly as many have HEARD Black Flag. So popularity could be the wrong word. There is a strong feeling that they were influential … which I totally agree with. Just not sure they were actually popular. 

After Black Flag you formed Dos with Mike Watt of Minutemen - A two piece band centered around bass. What led to the formation and style of Dos?

Actually the seeds had been sown during the time I was in BF. We did Minuteflag and The Minutemen opened for BF during the first 1 1/2 weeks of the 85 tour. During that time Mike asked me to send lyrics which he used on The Minutemen’s last record Three Way Tie for Last. When I got back, we jammed a little, and then D Boon died … I worried that Mike would quit bass altogether for a while … so I pushed the jamming in his room a bit for a while. These became early dos songs, along with some two bass noodlings I had created to support bedtime stories I had recorded for my young nephews.

So far Dos have four previous releases and a new album has been released this year. Has the new album been a long time coming? How does it differ from previous albums?

It has been a long time coming. We have been playing some of these songs for years. And since we both are owners of protools recording systems, we can record songs one at a time instead of having to go in to a recording studio with all the songs prepared. So we laid down tracks that way, one at a time, over the course of the last few years. We are both pretty busy. Then we involved Yuka Honda to mix it, who is also very busy … so the project did go on a while. 

Once of the differences is this ability to record one at a time … which allows for a focused session dedicated to a song (or more than one). It takes the pressure of of having to be spot on with a bunch of songs. And having played many of the songs live before allowed them to be recorded with more life to them I think. Mike was keen on having more instrumental material than our last record, so that also makes it different. The quality of the recording and mixing is quite high in my opinion.  I also believe we have become more adept at writing for dos after all these years.

You also have a new project now called ‘Awkward’? What can you tell us about that?

Devin Hoff is a friend and an amazing stand up bass player. He contacted me a while back about the possibility of playing together. I wrote some material (again with my background in writing for two basses I had an edge) and sent it to him in Chicago where he was living at the time. Nothing happened for a long while. He moved out to Los Angeles in mid July. He actually opened for dos at our record release party the day after he arrived in LA.  

Dos had some other gigs scheduled … and Mike called me one day to say he couldn’t do one at the end of August due to a conflict and could I put together something so we didn’t have to completely cancel. It seemed the perfect time to activate Devin, so I asked if he would help me out.  We developed more material and used some of what I had written especially for him. We gave ourselves a name. We did our first gig on Aug 28 downtown LA.  

Devin is also a busy guy, like Mike, and myself, so these projects have to develop however they do. I also have a virtual band. We build songs over the internet never at the same time or place. We have a facebook page and post material there sometimes. I can work at 6:30am on that, which is clearly not an ideal time to collaborate with others face to face …. 

I am hoping that Awkward will continue to play live, and we also have been discussing some recording. We are still figuring out who we are … so anything could happen … 

As well as playing in bands you’re also a dialogue editor for feature films. How did you get involved with that?

I was working in computers in the corporate world. I met someone who had a small company doing sound editing … and it seemed a good fit since I had the computer background as well as the music background. I convinced him to let me come and work for him, answering phones, keeping computers working, anything until I could ramp up my skills and be an editor. Things have gone very well and I am now working on bigger stuff …. It is more of a creative industry so it isn’t quite such a challenge to integrate. 

Thanks for talking with TIFP Kira! Anything else you’d like to add?

Don’t believe in rules …. at least in music … there aren’t any … 

Check out Dos here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/dos/326655392583