Spoken-word Tour To Come to Santa Fe
Henry Rollins is a hardworking man. For the past year, he’s performed more than 122 shows as part of his spoken-word tour, “The Long March.”
If that wasn’t enough, he’s been hard at work running his record label and publishing company, 2.13.61.
Yet the singer and songwriter and former frontman for Black Flag and Rollins Band has embarked on a 50-date “Capitalism” tour that started Sept. 6 in Honolulu. Rollins will perform in every capital city across the United States, ending with a Nov. 5 show at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C.
“My agent is responsible for the brilliance of this tour. I only wish I would have come up with it,” Rollins says while traveling to Boise, Idaho. “He came to me about a year ago and pitched a tour hitting the state capitals and started booking the show 20 months out.”
Part of the master plan was to have a show in Washington, D.C., the day before the general election.
“That was probably the first date booked,” he says. “I’m sure that there were people who wanted to rent out the space first. But with our thinking, we’ll be able to put on a show and give a point of view.”
Rollins says that a lot of the material that will be included is from “The Long March” set.
“I’m a year into it, and I’m a well-oiled machine now,” he says. “What’s different is that because it’s an election year, I will include some about the election.”
Rollins says he will continue to dish anecdotes gleaned and perspective gained from the road less traveled — sharing experiences that include recent visits to North Korea, Mongolia, Bhutan, Vietnam, India, Tibet, Sudan, Uganda, Haiti and Cuba.
But in the spirit of election season, he will provide pointed commentary and wry observations about the American democratic process.
“I’m not going to get on stage and tell people how to vote,” he says. “It’s really none of my business on how people vote. I’m trying to get them to vote if they are old enough and capable. My point is that I am reminding them about the similarities that we have. It’s always a great time to be in America, but this will be the high point of this year’s tour. Shepard Faireydid a great poster for the tour to make it extra noteworthy.”
Rollins says one of his main points is to put away all of the hatred that we have in the country.
“It’s good to disagree. Take George W. Bush,” he says. “I don’t have a great affection for what he did in office, but I’ve never been able to bring myself to hate him. And the hatred that comes after Barack Obama, I just don’t understand how’s he’s the most hated man in America. I understand that we have disagreements, but the hatred is where I draw the line. That’s not the America I want to live in, and I’m giving my opinion on how to make it better in the show.”