When I last saw Henry Rollins in a spoken word show - he would have been just a bit older than I am now (mid 30s - ish). Now, at 51, Rollins is more articulate and defined than I remember all those years ago. The rage is still there - but its been shaped by travel, work and life experience and another decade or so of reading and experiencing life.
A Henry Rollins spoken word show is a tour de force. Henry bursts onto the stage like he is about to kick into a black flag song, grabs the mic, tells us he has lots to talk to us about and begins to talk at breakneck pace with no let up whatsoever for two and a half hours.
The biggest surprise? Rollins has a positive view of the future. Several times throughout the show he reminded us that none of us escapes this century alive, and yet it is this century that requires us to make changes to save the environment, shift our focus to others and to push forward. In 300 years, he says, people should look back at this century and say "that's when humanity really got it together". In a world where the news is never good, and the last thing you expect is a old punk rocker talking about a bright future, this presented a challenge to those of us harbouring an Angry Young Man approach to life, but when it comes from Henry Rollins, we tend to listen.