More than 25 years ago, Henry Rollins made a name for himself as the frenzied, tattooed front man for the hardcore punk band Black Flag. While many of his contemporaries have long since disappeared from the stage, Rollins is still performing. The free-associating wordsmith still dabbles in music but also gives spoken-word performances and has toured with the United Service Organizations (USO), providing comic relief to U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

During his career, Rollins has averaged more than 100 performances a year and shows no signs of slowing down. He has tackled Lollapalooza and Woodstock, appeared on late night television with Conan O'Brien and Jay Leno, and snagged the occasional acting gig alongside such A-list celebrities as Will Smith and Al Pacino. Rollins even won a Grammy, for the audio book Get in the Van , an account of his road-tripping band days. In 2004, Rollins moved from performing onstage to behind the camera as host of his own television show on the Independent Film Channel. At first, the show focused on movies, but by 2006, he had extended the format to also include critiques of music, politics, and pop culture amidst a steady stream of celebrity guests and musicians.

During the 1980s, Black Flag toured incessantly, covering the United States and Canada and occasionally visiting Europe. The band took its name in reference to the traditional anarchist symbol of a black flag. Rollins proved to be a dynamic live performer and with him at the helm, Black Flag attracted a large fan base. Often, Rollins appeared onstage barefoot, wearing only shorts?veins popping, sweat spewing?as he hopped around, sometimes crouching to expel the lyrics and showing off his highly muscular, tattooed body. Washington Post reporter Joe Brown once wrote that a Black Flag concert is like a storm with "wild-child Rollins, raging and blazing in a pair of black shorts, the antithesis of calm. His rock output consists of idealistic lyrics sung-shouted over the band's assault?harsh, grinding, exhilarating songs that don't stop until they run out of gas or hit the guardrail." During Rollins' tenure with Black Flag, the group released several albums and singles, then folded in 1986.

After the band's breakup, Rollins formed a new group, the Rollins Band, which played similar music, though it included passages of jazz and a touch more heavy metal. The Rollins Band produced music at a feverish pace, releasing three albums between 1988 and 1990. Having established itself as a key player in the alternative rock world, the Rollins Band was invited to perform at the first Lollapal- ooza, in 1991. The band's 1992 release, The End of Silence , shot to No. 1 on the College Music Journal 's chart. The group's most noteworthy album, however, was 1994's Weight , which cracked Billboard 's Top 40. One of the album's singles, "Liar," garnered heavy rotation on MTV and helped the band win an invitation to appear at Woodstock '94. With frequent appearances on MTV and VH-1, Rollins continued to gain a following and in 1994, the charismatic entertainer appeared in his first film, The Chase , starring Charlie Sheen. That same year Details , the magazine for hip urban men, named Rollins its "Man of the Year."

As a band leader Rollins wrote many songs, but over the years he branched out and also published opinion pieces and stream-of-consciousness rants in various rock journals and magazines. Along the way, he also began to give spoken-word performances, which brought his written material to life. Rollins produces books through his own publishing company, 2.13.61, which is named for his birthdate. Founded in 1984, the company has published Rollins' journals, as well as books by Australian musician Nick Cave and Exene Cervenka of the punk band X. Like his songs, Rollins' books have an angry, raw tone. A frequent subject is his dreary childhood and the death of his best friend and roommate, Joe Cole, who died after they were held up at gunpoint outside their apartment in 1991. Rollins also writes about politics. By 1997, Rollins had published ten books and produced several audio books, including the 1995 best spoken word Grammy winner Get in the Van , a recollection of his days on the road with Black Flag.

Reserved tickets are $25.  On sale date is Friday March 12 at noon.

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