In a new interview with music writer Joel Gausten, Henry Rollins discusses the upcoming vinyl re-release of the Rollins Band's 1987 debut album Life Time and the events leading up to the formation of the Rollins Band following the dissolution of his previous group Black Flag in 1986. An excerpt from the chat appears below:

Joel Gausten: How did (producer) Ian MacKaye become involved in the recording of Life Time? What was his greatest impact on the creation of that album?

Henry Rollins: "I called Ian on a payphone from England and said I needed help with the record. He flew out immediately and took charge. He made a clear, hard-hitting album in no time, which was all we could afford. Almost everyone in the band had a lot of respect for him and that made things go pretty smoothly. Ian is a very good producer. I don’t think a lot of people know the amazing amount of records he has produced. It’s crazy."

Joel Gausten: I've always loved how Life Time sounds. As great as the later Black Flag albums are, the production – especially on the drums – always sounded a little foggy to me, whereas things on Life Time are very crisp and coherent. Was this the result of Ian's production, the studio you used, or both?

Henry Rollins: "It was a combination of (drummer) Sim Cain's excellent playing (and) recording the reality of it clearly on tape. Ian didn’t mess around. We put up the mics and rolled tape. I think we were done with the whole thing in about a week. It’s all I could afford. Some Black Flag albums were mixed by someone who medicates with marijuana. They sounded a little foggy to me as well."

Joel Gausten: After Come in and Burn (1997), you formed a new version of Rollins Band with the guys from Mother Superior. What changed in your working/creative relationship with the original band – especially Chris and Sim – that necessitated moving forward with new musicians after spending so many years together?

Henry Rollins: "It was great working with people who were into it, ready to go, were happy to travel, didn’t whine and didn’t talk about money all the time. Playing with the Mother Superior guys is probably the only time I was in a positive environment making music. It was great to be in a band without drama or cliche adult rockstar problems and just play really hard every night."

Joel Gausten: With the exception of (bassist) Andrew Weiss, the original Rollins Band line-up reunited for a tour with X in 2006. Why didn't this incarnation of the band continue beyond that point?

Henry Rollins: "Because it was a bad idea of guitarist Chris Haskett’s that I said yes to. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to fall back in with those people. That’s a summer I’ll never get back. It should have never happened. The playing was good, but the experience was awful. I blame myself only."

The complete interview is available at this location.

Due out November 18th on Rollins' 2.13.61 label (in association with Dischord Records), the revamped edition of Life Time has been remastered for vinyl by TJ Lipple and will include updated artwork by Jason Farrell. The record will also contain a complimentary digital download coupon for the nine original album songs plus four tracks recorded live in Kortrijk, Belgium on October 16, 1987. More information is available here.