[The one and only Henry Rollins contributes a column and far-reaching reportage to the music section of the LA Weekly. Look for your weekly Henry Rollins fix right here on West Coast Sound every Friday and make sure to tune in to Henry's KCRW radio show every Saturday evening, or online, or as a podcast, or however else you decided to listen to the most eclectic DJ on LA's airwaves.

This installment includes Henry's thoughts on network TV, Decision Points–read that in your best GWB voice–and the Hollywood dreamosphere, plus an update on the voiceover adventure and the awesomely annotated playlist for his KCRW BROADCAST #89 for tomorrow, Saturday 11-13-10. For more details please visit KCRW.com and HenryRollins.com]

How am I? Well, I'm glad I asked me. Happy for the most part. Happy to be breathing when I wake up after the few hours of sleep I have had over the last few days, happy to be working. I have been working away all week. No star turn, merely a cog in a massive machine, making network television magic. It's good time comedy we're churning out, one shot at a time. The cast and crew could not possibly be more friendly and talented. The hours can be long but we're all happy as hell to be working in a situation where there's lots of laughs and free coffee. I am pulling my weight in the world, that's always the satisfying feeling I have when I walk off the set and back to my car after a day of work inside the gleaming Hollywood dreamosphere.

I learned something about television the other day. I learned that shows are created to have on hand to quickly insert in place of a show that has fallen out of favor part way through the season. Keep them smiling! Keep the viewers happy–throw your shoulder into it! The furnace must be kept properly stoked. Apparently, the show I am working on is for this purpose. With great zeal and gratitude, I supply the demand.

In other enthralling travails, that voice over I went in for last week has turned into a bit of a cliffhanger, kind of like the Miller-Murkowski write-in countdown in wild, untamed AK. Initially, I was told that the employment opportunity had “gone away” as they almost always do in my case. The damn thing has come roaring back to life and there is another audition to do as now it's down do two of us to see who has the voice of choice. There will be no cage match, just a small booth, a microphone, probably a single sentence of copy with two paragraphs of direction. I can't say that the suspense is building within me but I will be there, voice in hand, or something.

I cannot convey to you the obsessive watch I kept on America's forty-third president, George W. Bush. Almost everything he did filled me with copious amounts of fear, fascination, frustration and astonishment. Oh, the laugh track he generated as he beat the daylights out of the English language and made the whole planet go all wobbly. Boy George is back in the world he changed forever to promote his new book, Decision Points. When I think of those two words, I hear GWB's voice saying them and I have to be careful not to shoot coffee through both nostrils. I make up my own Bush quotes: “I called my book Decision Points because at one point, I had to make a decision about what to call the book. As a president, you have to make a lot of decisions at a lot of different points. It's part of the job.”

Hearing him field the lobs tossed to him by Matt Lauer brought back so many memories. At some point, I will have to readify that book. I want to get edifacated on his justification of waterboarding, now that he has helped make it a viable option and almost ensured its use on captured American soldiers in future battles. Just another decision point, I guess.

Next week, I will do my best to report to you faithfully. I am not sure of what my internet access will be. What a sleepless week it has been. I have some long flights ahead of me, I will pursue the elusive sleep once I am wheels up. Until next week, brace yourself for the hot syrup sweetness of this weekend's radio show. Details below.

DON'T MISS SATURDAY NIGHTS ON THA K, KCRW FM 89.9

6-8 PM – HENRY ROLLINS (FINC), ENGINEER X, WILL 'THE DOUBLE B' BENTLEY

8-10 PM – LIZA 'I'LL TAKE YOU THERE' RICHARDSON

10-MIDNIGHT – MARIO 'THE ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY MINUTE MIRACLE' COTTO

GO TO KCRW.COM FOMOINFO

KCRW BROADCAST #89

11-13-10

Fanatics! Tonight's show is out of control, off the hook and other hackneyed phrases. Hades has indeed been unleashed! The show is all over the place and will alternately attract and repel in equal measure. I went online and saw that I could listen to the new version of Grinderman's “Heathen Child,” called “Super Heathen Child.” What makes it super? A fair question, Fanatic. The super element is that Robert Fripp goes for soloist guitar rippage through the last two minutes of the track with Nick Cave howling over the top. I could not find a download of the track and my 12″ single is still in the mails. So, I tore it off Highway Del Info onto my CDR recorder and so we have music. Finally, we get to US Maple. Not everyone's cup but they suit me just fine. They are beyond interesting. Remember a couple of weeks ago, I was telling you about that Archie Shepp album Black Gypsy where Mr. Shepp blasts on soprano sax? A CD extra track from the album is featured tonight called “Pitchin' Can,” originally issued on an album of the same name. Noah Howard is also playing on this track, great stuff. We have not played any Amen for a long time, so tonight, a sonic wedge of their particular brand. New XBXRX single and download, tonight a killer track of Vice Cooler's genius. Fall Fanatics will note that the expanded version of The Wonderful And Frightening World Of The Fall has finally been released and was it worth the wait or what?! Dan Trice, our show's Fall info merchant must be over the moon. Four CDs of Fall tracks. Rough mixes, singles, radio sessions, live tracks–a very well considered package. Tonight a great track from one of the Jensen Sessions that's sure to please. I love this Fall song and this is a great version of it. Christian Renou is the musical force that records under the name Brume. There's a lot of his material out there. I only have a few albums and still wading in but so far, what I have heard is really cool. A sample of it is featured tonight for your evaluation. New Witch re-issue available from Forced Exposure, what a cool band. We have not played any Wolf Eyes on our show for awhile. That problem was addressed as you will see at the bottom of the set. It's a great show, Fanatics. Next week's show is a scorcher that I think you will find to your liking. Engineer X and I put it together at our mini-mosk studio set up as I will be way out of town. I'll fill you in next week. Until then, stay the course and STAY FANATIC!!! –Henry

E-Mail address for Henry: Henryontheradio@gmail.com

01. Grinderman – Super Heathen Child / 12″ single

02. Jane Birkin – Help Cammionneur! / Di Doo Dah

03. Mohammed Rafi – Jaan Pehechaan Ho / Lux & Ivy's Favorites Vol. 3

04. The Stooges – 1969 (Alt Vocal) / The Stooges

05. Mississippi Fred McDowell – Shake 'Em On Down / Come & Found You Gone '67

06. US Maple – Running From Kabob / Talker

07. Bad Brains – Sailin' On / Bad Brains

08. Funkadelic – Clone Communicado / Vol. 2: “P” Is The Funk

09. Black Tambourine – Throw Aggi Off The Bridge / Black Tambourine

10. Philip Lynott – Dear Miss Lonely Hearts / Solo In Soho

11. Archie Shepp – Pitchin' Can / Black Gipsy

12. Amen – Coma America / Amen

13. The Rajas – Shifting Sands / Klik Records

14. Duke Ellington – Amad / Far East Suite

15. XBXRX – Knowledge Is Death / O

16. Lair Of The Minotaur – Hades Unleashed / War Metal Battle Master

17. Charles Tyler Ensemble – Lacy's Out East / Charles Tyler Ensemble

18. Aurelio Kowano & Alberto Funali – Vozua Vakuvitana Gelegele – Forgotten Guitars From Mozambique

19. Casual Dots – Clocks / Casual Dots

20. Voa Saroun – Maksy / Cambodian Rocks Vol. 3

21. The Fall – No Bulbs (Long Session) / The Wonderful And Frightening World Of . . .

22. Brume – Sci-Trap #2 / Signature Model

23. Witch – Like A Chicken / Introduction

24. Wolf Eyes – Track 04 / Dog Jaw

25. Elliott Carter – Tempo E Tempi: IV. Una Columba / Works Of Elliott Carter Vol. 4

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