Железо

by Henry Rollins, Генри Роллинз

Генри Роллинз - бескомпромиссный бунтарь современного рока, лидер двух культовых групп `Черный флаг` (1977-1986) и `Роллинз Бэнд`, вошедших в мировую историю популярной музыки. Генри Роллинз - издатель и друг Хьюберта Селби, Уильяма Берроуза, Ника Кейва и Генри Миллера. Генри Роллинз - поэт и прозаик, чьи рассказы, стихи и дневники на границе реальности и воображения бьют читателя наповал и не оставляют равнодушным никого. Генри Роллинз - музыка, голос, реальная сила. Его любят, ненавидят и слушают во всем мире. Сборник легендарных текстов Генри Роллинза - впервые на русском языке.

Ввиду авторского использования ненормативной лексики книга не рекомендована для чтения людям, не достигшим совершеннолетия, или тем, кого может оскорбить сниженный стиль повествования.

Genres: Nonfiction, Music, Poetry, Biography, Memoir, Essays, Biography Memoir

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Henry Rollins (born Henry Lawrence Garfield; often referred to simply as Rollins) is an American singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, author, actor and publisher.

After joining the short-lived Washington, D.C. band State of Alert in 1980, Rollins fronted the Californian hardcore punk band Black Flag from 1981 until 1986. Following the band's breakup, Rollins soon established the record label and publishing company 2.13.61 to release his spoken word albums, as well as forming the Rollins Band, which toured with a number of lineups until 2003 and during 2006.

Since Black Flag, Rollins has embarked on projects covering a variety of media. He has hosted numerous radio shows, such as The Henry Rollins Show and Harmony In My Head, and television shows, such as MTV's 120 Minutes and Jackass, along with roles in several films. Rollins has also campaigned for human rights in the United States, promoting gay rights in particular, and tours overseas with the United Service Organizations to entertain American troops.

Reviews

[Vache · Rating 5 out of 5]

Henry Rollins is my savior. I understood Henry Rollins before I understood myself. I picked this book because it contains excerpts from many of Rollins' other books. I have read Get In The Van by Rollins and that book saved my life. I respect Henry Rollins very much. He is a very smart man. My favorite quote from the book is: “I'll never forget how the depression and loneliness felt good and bad at the same time. Still does.” I love this quote because it so true and I can relate to it very well. I have feelings and thoughts very similar to those of Henry Rollins and that is why I love reading his works. As always, Rollins' writing style is amazing. I feel as though I am not ENTIRELY alone in the world; feel as though there is actually some reason behind all these bullshit feelings and bullshit thoughts. Henry Rollins is the closest thing I have to a God in my life. I wouldn't recommend this book to everyone. Not all people understand the feelings which Henry Rollins talks about in his writing. If you do not hate something or are not angry, reading anything by Henry Rollins is not a good idea. If you have a strange and burning hatred towards everything, Henry Rollins is an excellent gateway to finding some humanity.

[Gabriel Strange · Rating 2 out of 5]

At times there were shimmers of something good to read. The writing quickly got old fast however.

Now don't get me wrong, I am a fan of Mr.Rollin's music and spoken word. I find both excellent and equally honest and gritty.

With this book however, it was too much of a "WELCOME TO MY SICK SAD WORLD" and whether or not it holds true to the author himself, I could care less. It was overall just a monotonous experience. With the one track mind Henry has shown through his poetry, diary entries etc over the years of his published works there has been very little development.

Now I understand how he feels but regardless this was just a snooze-a-thon in the end and I struggled to get to the end.

On the flipside, I speculate whether or not my morals are in the right place on a day to day basis. I also wonder if anyone can see the grimness that I feel inside despite my smiles and courtesy "Yes, I've had a pretty good day." THANKFULLY Henry reminds me that is all good and I am yet to sink to the true level of socially inept depravity others have made their goal to wear like a cowl.

You keep on despising Henry, I'll keep on paying your bills.

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meathead renaissance man Henry Rollins swings up and down like a see-saw. Once he wins you over with a great piece about asshole bouncers he blows it by telling us "Madonna makes me want to drink beer". Um, nope, Madonna makes me want to puke, Henry. He's got some wild lines about deformed suburbanites from the South Bay, but then he blows it by talking about animal torture. Oh well, I hear Madonna's available again, Henry. Go for it.

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was my first taste of what a terrible writer Rollins is. I love the guy. I love his honesty and it's this that tries to salvage his "writing". It's as if he was satisfied with the way he wrote in middle school and decided that he didn't need to improve, just to tell the truth.

Go get'em Henry!

[West Mack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good. I liked Rollins in Black Flag but jumped ship on him with Rollins Band, then came back when i got into his spoke word. Portable.. is pretty much a compalation of every book of anything hed written prior to. i liked it, the short stories the most (The Iron), but i could only stand it for about 30min at a time. After that i either wanted to break something or assault a cop.

[Alec Downie · Rating 3 out of 5]

As deeply disturbing as it gets.

I saw Henry do his spoken word and loved it but this I struggled with.

It surprises me what he allowed to stay in or glorified, and I wonder how many kids have committed obscene acts of violence, trying to be as cool (sad) as Rollins.

Not for anyone that is not of a sound constitution.

[space · Rating 1 out of 5]

are you fucking kidding me?

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

300 pages of Henry Rollins is a well traveled misanthrope with heavy duty issues. Yay.

[Topher · Rating 2 out of 5]

Narcissistic violent incel-esque sludge, besides a few decent stories. Talk to a therapist, man.

[Tsvetelina Stambolova-Vasileva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Хенри Ролинс е една от значимите фигури на американската пънк сцена през 80-те и 90-те години, вокалист на Black Flag и Rollins Band. Брутален, излъчващ агресия красив здравеняк от тези, от които е по-добре да стоиш настрана. Хенри през 80-те не говореше, той плюеше думите, а през 90-те ги използваше, за да поразява противниците си. Затова, какво беше учудването ми, когато преди време попаднах на негов запис, където говори пред публика. Слушах го зяпнала почти час, без да усетя как минава времето - успя да ме разсмее със сълзи, да ме разчувства, да ме замисли и очарова.

В края на 90-те Ролинс се отказва от музикалната сцена, тъй като се чувства изчерпан. Снима се във филми, издава книги, води предавания, обикаля света като оратор. Съвсем съзнателно решава да не създава семейство и да пътува през живота само с ръчен багаж от няколко приятели и няколко полезни служебни връзки. Той е интроверт, който се чувства най-удобно в собствената си компания, има желязна професионална етика, изключително работоспособен е, начетен, чаровен, умеещ да се изразява и да се аргументира, с разкошно чувство за хумор и самоирония, обезоръжаващо откровен. Той е една от белите лястовици в шоубизнеса - никога не е употребявал алкохол и забранени вещества, няма надуто его, винаги е готов да излезе от комфортната си зона и е по детски любопитен и любознателен към огромния свят извън пределите на Америка. Сам, с фотоапарата си, обикаля места, на които никой разумен американец не би посмял да стъпи - Северна Корея, Иран, Афганистан, Судан. Истинско вдъхновение!

Затова ми е трудно да оценя тази книга. Всъщност, това даже не е книга, а нахвърляни текстове, които Хенри Ролинс пише някъде от началото на 80-те до края на 90-те. Състои се от записки от дневниците, които води, пътеписи от турнетата, бели стихове, хардкор проза и просто несвързан поток на съзнанието. Трудно ми е да я оценя, защото наистина харесах част от текстовете, сториха ми се болезнено откровени и намразих останалите, които възприех като чисто позьорство и желание да шокираш. Вярно, че самият Ролинс казва в едно от интервютата си, че няма нищо общо с момчето, което е бил. Автобиографичните записки осветлиха отчасти този период от живота му - самотата, любовните разочарования, бруталността и мизерията на пънк-сцената, посттравматичния стрес след убийството на най-добрия му приятел при неуспешен опит за грабеж, депресията, мотивите, които го движат напред. Останалото ми се иска просто да не го бях чела, тъй като след него винаги ще се питам дали всъщност Хенри не носи този мрак и това насилие в себе си, скрито зад фасада от привидна нормалност.
Прочетено на руски под заглавието "Железо".

[Sergei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Две цитаты. Первая: «Я не хочу опираться ни на чьё плечо. Мне это не нужно. Сама мысль о «Ком-то особенном ком-то!» для меня – словно куча дерьма». Вторая: «Я скучаю по тебе. Я знаю, что продолжаю это повторять, я знаю, что ты уже устала от моих писем, но не могу примириться с тем, что ты ушла».

Обе, абсолютно противоположные по эмоциональной окраске, фразы принадлежат одному человеку – Генри Роллинзу. Знатоки экстремальных направлений в музыке знают это имя по двум коллективам, лидером которых и был автор представляемой книги – «The Black Flag» и «Rollins Band». Знатоки кино знают Роллинза по многим фильмам, среди которых классический киберпанк «Джонни-мненмоник». Внешне Роллинз – вполне арнольдошварцнеггероподобный бугай, только умный. И, судя по книге, наблюдательный и впечатлительный человек.

Книга представляет собой путевые зарисовки с гастрольных поездок (интересно увидеть гастроли рок-группы изнутри, как это всё происходит – там), тусовочные страсти и личные трагедии, стихи. Стоит предупредить, что в своих выражениях Роллинз не стесняется и блюстителям чистоты языка в «Железо» заглядывать не рекомендуется. В своём творчестве Роллинз умудряется сочетать гневные проповеди в адрес американского конформизма, и обычные наблюдения за улицей с жутковатыми, но честными выводами: «…и пьют, и проживают медленную смерть, подобную жизни, и пьют, и тонут в собственном дерьме…».

��асколько Роллинз свиреп в своей музыке, настолько он может быть мягок и сентиментален в своих записках. Иногда даже делается немножко неудобно: взрослых мужик, а ноет, жалуется, сетует на судьбу. А потом он спохватывается и выдаёт пассаж, в котором предстаёт суперзвездой. Порой Роллинз сбивается на пафос и говорит раздражающие банальности, порой удивительно лиричен. Не устаёт признаваться в любви к Мадонне. Но главное, что в каждой своей строке Роллинз честен перед собой (редкое качество), и эта искренность – она даётся не просто так. В общем, нормальный такой мужик, не без тараканов в голове, взял и написал о том, что у него наболело и накопилось.

В целом же, «Железо» мне видится своеобразным фотоальбомом, зафиксировавшим и музыку и настроения смутных 80-х, художественным документом поколения недовольного, шумного, ворчливого, но смирившегося…

[marciluna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rollins writes an incredibly desolate and great collection of stories in this collected anthology of stories and journals. He most certainly is a product of his environment and his mood seems to be heavily influenced by what he sees and experiences around him. His journals provide insight to how his life was on the road and some of his short stories and entries honestly really changed my opinion on how I view certain aspects of my life, and others were really just… gruesome. still really good though. Sometimes I do want to shake Henry by the shoulders and scream at him to “SNAP OUT OF IT!!!” when he goes on about how a woman broke his heart and how no one will understand him like “the road” understands him. I feel like he would say stuff like “I’m a beast, I’m a tank” if he understood modern day slang. Ugh, but also, aw.

[Adam Simpson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super masculine role model Henry Rollins and a cool little collection that samples a bunch of his different works. Some of it is hard to swallow but it's kind of expected from how intense this guy is. I liked it all and hope to read more of his stuff soon.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

As terribly and horrible cliche as this will sound- this book was one of my main saving graces through high school. In a time when emo wasn't cool and you were a jock or you were no one, this book of personal lash-outs taught me that there really is more to life than a designer label.

Yeah, Rollins can be a pansy, but who isn't? All of his books are just little glances into his mind at that given time. There's no grand plot, there's no happy ending. It's raw. I like that.

I've read this book several times over, and it's highlighted to pieces. I always manage to find something that I can relate to.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up from the library because it had Henry Rollins face on the cover and I can't resist anything Rollins-related. So I went into it not knowing that it was a collection of all of his works.

At first, I was a little bummed, but in the end it ended up working out really well. I love Henry, love his music, love his writing, love his spoken word, but I'm not the hugest fan of poetry. I need something that keeps me turning pages, dying to know what happens next. Poetry doesn't do it for me. So it was nice to only have to get through a few pages of poetry before moving onto the short stories or journal entries.

[Warwick Stubbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book helped me through a very dark period of depression and suicidal thoughts. Rollins' writing gave me something to connect with, someone who had been there. There are times when the writing has great emotional depth, other times, perhaps not; and still other times when it's just all anger and frustration. It's not for people looking for "poetry", it's there as a testament to Henry Rollins himself, and so for others who may also find solace in his words.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first Rollins book I read. I loved his music and wanted to give his books a try. I loved the short, terse entries. Each filled with gems of advice and wisdom, or just rantings and ravings.

[lk05321 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fresh look at the realities of life as told through the man who's lived a harsh life, Henry Rollins.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excerpts from most of his books. He is a pretty intense guy, I am surprised I really liked it. He's kinda a man-child, but honest if nothing else.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love you, Henry, that's all I can say. I read this after finding his shows on IFC and wanting more.

[B.T. Hogan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reads like a fifteen-year-old boy's secret diary.

[Todd Stockslager · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review title: The Whistle Knows my Name

Up front, I've never heard any Henry Rollins music in any band he's played in (Black Flag and the Rollins Band are mentioned in the back cover synopsis). I bought the book after seeing him on a rerun of his appearance on the Charlie Rose interview show while in London in 2015. He was smart, rational, insightful, and funny. And also up front, I know the song lyric I appropriated for my review title is from an Arcade Fire song, not a Henry Rollins song, but for some reason thst lyric was running through my head as I read this collection of selections from Rollins's several books as of 1997. It seems to fit his mood as he was writing much of this.

Unfortunately, his writing, despite some rare flashes of insight and humor, is not often rational or smart. It is mostly bitter, angry, violent, and sometimes vile. He was an angry young man, the decade between his early 20s and 30s, with a sharp point on his pen when writing these selections. Some of the selections--journal entries from tour stops, reminisces, poetry, fiction--are so violent and vile that I could barely finish them, and wished I hadn't after I did. While the copyright page claims most of the writing is fictional, that statement was neither reassuring nor always believable. The writer was a disturbed, perturbed, and dangerous man (definitely male, and often violently misogynistic), and whether that was a purely fictional point of view or a doppelganger for Rollins is equally disturbing.

Which was part of the point. Rollins wants to be right in the reader's face and confront them with hard statements whether of fact or fiction. I suspect it mirrors his music, based on his journal notes about on-stage violence at some of his shows. Sometimes, confrontation in a controlled setting like a book like this is good, and there are short bits of writing that are resonant and memorable here, even if mostly unquotable. So for this reason I give it two stars, a cautious recommendation with the content warning label that might also apply to a Henry Rollins record.

[Patrick Neylan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Rollins. His music varies from terrific to unlistenable but his spoken-word performances mark him out as one of the greatest raconteurs of our time. I've seen him live five times: one time he was good; the other five he was jaw-droppingly brilliant, speaking for 2½ hours without pause or hesitation. Only Billy Connolly does it better.

This book ranges from scribbled diary entries to completed prose from the mid-80s to the mid-90s. Much of the time he comes across as either an arrogant dickhead or a deeply troubled man on the brink of suicide. None of it is comfortable reading and it's hard to reconcile either of these with the caring, liberal, self-effacing figure I've seen on stage. Only the aggression is consistent, but on stage he's aggressively caring and aggressively liberal and aggressively self-effacing: nobody mocks Rollins better than Rollins himself.

Unlike his spoken-word shows – which he'd already started doing during the period covered by this book – there is not a scintilla of humour here. His loneliness turns in on itself to become aggressive (that word again: you can't write about Rollins without using the word 'aggressive') self-loathing.

Probably the best moment is the description of how he learned self-discipline through working out (The Iron), and I speak as someone who couldn't imagine a more tedious waste of time than lifting weights.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit disappointed in henry.
Kind of dig the guy and not sure why. I don't listen to his music and have never really checked out his spoken word. Honestly one of the only things i know him from is Johnny Numonic... which is probably a bad thing. But I've always been intrigued and interested by him. The snippets of interviews and performances I've seen. I'm usually down.
But Henry is a sad deranged man in according to this writings.
As an older dude now it comes off as very insecure and contradictory. Henry is very upset and fragile and under the guise of strength he demonstrates severe weakness and fear from relationships and human contact.
Some gems deep down in here but they're deep in there... The part about Iron is probably the best,
otherwise it's quite disturbing. If the wrong person saw you reading this/knew what it was they'd likely try to have you institutionalized or think you problematic. So much of it is downright torture porn. I want to check out some more cohesive writing of his. Biographical stuff. No poetry. No stream of consciousness. Not fiction please. Just the goods. I've heard good things about get in the van. But anyways, this isn't it.

[Dominika · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a huge fan of Rollins in my early 20's and admittedly, his music and some of his spoken word stuff had helped me through my life (which only really got great a year ago). Sometimes you need that anger, that voice that expresses its contempt for humanity. And admittedly, there is a lot of that in here. The entire message isn't subtle, but some of the observations are. The poetry isn't strikingly beautiful, but is rather grounded in reality. Some people would consider this dark and Rollins to be psychotic (he definitely is dark), but it isn't an underlying psychosis, just that he had seen the seedy underbelly of humanity.

I'm a bit torn between a 3 and a 4. On one hand, this is somewhat repetitive and that is the nature of the beast of these things. On the other hand, I enjoyed what I read. I suppose it's up to personal preference.

[Snem · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of Henry Rollins' music and spoken word so I was really eager to read this collection of assorted pieces of his writing throughout the years. There were some great moments in here. "Get in the Van" and the article about weight-training were great. I enjoyed the honesty when describing the loneliness and depression of touring.

This is angry, aggressive, gritty, raw and violent. There are no plots, no story arcs, so much rambling. It was just really tough to enjoy and every essay seemed one note so they all kind of mush together in my mind.

Teenage angsty me would have loved this, but aged ( and hopefully somewhat wiser) me is just not that entertained by this book. I still love Henry Rollins though so I only recommend this to hardcore Rollins fans.

[Literati · Rating 4 out of 5]

This sort of writing, so charged with violence, antipathy and rage, is so powerful in small amounts.
Rollins is such a unique writer, and his prose reflects this. Are his missives the evolution of Beat poetry or are they reflection of his music; short, charged and direct.
His diaries are also included in this collection. As a massive fan of his music, it is fascinating to see the other side of Black Flag- their concerts are defined by violence and stress, and they seemed to have an antagonistic relationship with everything in the music industry.
But Rollins reflects these tensions so beautifully- the simmering intensity coupled with the honesty of his writing makes it special. No other lead singer could so perfectly combine this level of detail with a similar level of emotion.

[Jordin Owen · Rating 4 out of 5]

this man is so bizarre but truly and inspiration. it's not a book you can sit down and read the whole thing in one sitting but definitely something to revisit every now and then. Rollins has an insane mind and work ethic it truly is inspiring, however he's a little kooky to say the least. It is fun to see his strange inquiries however contrasted with his Mental health journaling. Something that can be heavily related to whilst also understanding things he's been thru and knowing when to separate feelings.

[Mat Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compendium of Rollins writing: memoir, poetry, short stories that serves as a good introduction to a very single minded and determined artist. It is not always an easy read: Rollins work is sometimes bleak, misanthropic and unremitting. In the gloom though there is an absence of self pity, a rich creative mind at work and a dark black humour that keeps the attention.

[John Sperling · Rating 3 out of 5]

This isn’t a book that I read as much as an experience that I survived. From the angst-ridden poetry and essays born of isolation, trauma, and abuse to the journal entries of life on tour (a few of which are stellar; the sections from Get In The Van and the spoken-word adaptations are hilarious), Henry Rollins spills his guts in an anthology that reads like a mash-up between the B-movie version of a Stephen King novel and the destructive power of an atom bomb.