When a flawless beauty like this gets ruined, it feels like the double damage were done. Still, even if his body got corrupted, that undeniable, intrinsincly, effortlessly charm hasn't taken away, til the end. This way he has grown a link of a long chain of those who were born for a tale and gone for reality, forged from the silver ore of talent, charisma, corrupted beauty and premature departure. When the beauty and talent meets tragedy, an icon is born.
Now this IS magical. Rowland s. Howard before he ever met Nick Cave - Rowland when he was only SEVENTEEN! (Aaawww!) - giving his views on punk rock. He looks every inch the Model of Youth here: he looks like a real dandy. Dig that eye makeup! But at the same time, he already looks (although of course he wasn't) vaguely morbid and sickly. JOLI-LAID, as the French say, as opposed to conventionally handsome. There are two really striking moments in this interview, if you ask me. The first really striking moment comes at about 1:40, when the interviewer ask Rowland, "What do your PARENTS think, of your life-style?" and Rowland, laughing, explains, "Oh, they think I'm a WIMP..." - which I thought was hilarious, because it's just what one would expect. The second really striking moment comes near the end, at around 3:01, when the interviewer asks Rowland, "What's 'Broken Hands' about?", and Rowland - cool as a cat - shoots back, "Self-mutilation," with a little shrug, and just the barest hint of a hip sneer in his voice, like he's asking (without needing to ask out loud, of course) "How d'you like THAT?" It's the sound - and, saying it, Rowland has the look - of someone cocky, lucky, and young, someone who's on top and who's going to stay on top, someone who knows more (or thinks he knows more) than his interviewer. That hip sneer returns at 3:16, when he explains that the sort of self-mutilation described in 'Broken Hands' is "NOT as in putting a safety-pin through your lower LIP, trying to be HIP or something..." (and you can just bet Rowland was well aware of the internal rhyme of 'lip' and 'hip'; he knew he was being listened to and he wanted to sound memorable): he knew, and could see through, the cliched assumptions that the interviewer had about "punk rock", and he wanted to upend as many of these assumptions as he could, and to make them seem absurd. Rowland's whole early raison d'etre - in Model of Youth and the Young Charlatans, and in his days in The Boys Next Door - was arguably based on just this absurdifying of punk stereotypes; on putting ironic curlicues around lyrics of teenage angst and punk-rock self-destruction, playing them for arch laughs. The ultimate example of this, of course, is "Shivers" (ruclips.net/video/CDhBYixBwyQ/видео.html). Anyway, I just wanted to say that I loved this interview. And I'll always love Rowland S. Howard. R.I.P.
@@jetboy_ Thank you. That was very kind of you to say so. I'm a poet, so I always try to put as much care as possible into what I write. By the way, if you want to hear one of my poems, you can click here: ruclips.net/video/LnG41XLUsNU/видео.html. That's a video of me reciting a poem that I wrote *about* Rowland S. Howard (supposed to be in his voice), called "Rowland's Song." I count Rowland S. Howard - an Nick Cave, and Mark E. Smith (of the Fall) - as major poetic influences. I write poetry that aspires to the condition of rock'n'roll song; I like to think of myself as a rock'n'roll poet.
I usually don't reply to comments, but wow, this is so well written! I've probably never seen such a detailed analysis of an interview, you're very skilled, I really admire that. And also it's always very great to see other people sharing love for Rowland, he was a wonderful and incredibly talented man. Rest in peace, Rowland, we miss you.
It must have taken guts to look like that in Oz in 1977,I spent 6 months in Sydney in 1981 as a teenage Punk and had stuff thrown at me and yobbos picking fights with me nearly every day.
He is lovely... I never saw him this young before... I know that sounds daft because I am roughly the same age and lived in Berlin at the same time but he just seems so untouched..
I also never saw him as a healthy young man. I came across crime and the city solution in the early nineties and i found them remarkable. Also the concert of shotgun wedding, when lydia lunch and rowland s. howard played in vienna 92 was great.
I think he's lovely too. He's my absolute rock idol. Do you mean you were living in Berlin at the same time he was? And did you see him then? I wish I could have seen him.
I think they're sweet too. I will always adore Rowland S. Howard, but lately I'm becoming increasingly fascinated by Ollie Olsen. He had a long and fascinating career, and he must be one of the only people to have collaborated with both Rowland S. Howard (in the Young Charlatans) and Michael Hutchence (in Max Q). I find it fascinating that Ollie worked with both Rowland and Michael.
My Dad just sent me Decline And Fall by Evelyn Waugh. R.I.P. Rowland. RIP it up man. I love the fact that like most greats he kept the same guitar & a couple of pedals & his amps. Simple set up but what he did with those few bits was just awesome. Fuckin' boss!
Interesting, astute analysis. I would just add that the 17 year old Rowland had little in him of the annoyingly self-conscious desire to piss off the “normals” that you hear in interviews with punk musicians and fans back then. He’s out of step with society but is so because his sensibilities are so different. It’s not just a phase.
He had a great book collection, Dave Graney in an interview stated while living at the same squat in London Rowland had the first Hunter S Thompson books he'd ever seen .
@@mikeydread62 Not a bad comparison, I could see how Can's Michael Karoli guitar playing could be considered "totally out there" and thus extreme for it's time.
yeah, probably just skinhead culture at the time in general too, but idk if there was actually a lot of that in melbourne yet, at the time. These two probably got roughed up a lot if there was, lol
Radio Birdman pro Nazis, are you fuckin serious?!!? I was around at the time n knew Rob Younger. I say knew coz i split Sydney for London October '89 n am still in dirty ol' London Town. I was quite surprised to read your comment referring to Birdman as pro Nazis. They never came out with shit like that n Rob never spoke to me about Nazis bollox. If i thought they lent that way in the slightest i can assure you that i n many others wouldn't have gone near em with a friggin barge pole. I wonder what put that idea in your head..... The skinhead scene was full on in Sydney n getting a kicking from them, or the suburban yobs, was something regular to look forward to.......TWATS!! Getting a kicking n beating in the 70's thru to the mid 80's was such a common occurrence it became dangerous to go out on your own. Anyone who was around at the time n dressing differently knows what i'm talking about. It was a nightmare tho i look back with pride coz it never once occurred to me that if i changed my look they'd leave me alone. Why don't you ask Rob himself if they were pro Nazis? It's doable.....🎶🍻🎸☮️🏴
Oh my goodness Rowland looks like an angel.... because he is an angel. RIP. 🥀
Looks like heroin and perhaps coke
When a flawless beauty like this gets ruined, it feels like the double damage were done. Still, even if his body got corrupted, that undeniable, intrinsincly, effortlessly charm hasn't taken away, til the end. This way he has grown a link of a long chain of those who were born for a tale and gone for reality, forged from the silver ore of talent, charisma, corrupted beauty and premature departure. When the beauty and talent meets tragedy, an icon is born.
Now this IS magical. Rowland s. Howard before he ever met Nick Cave - Rowland when he was only SEVENTEEN! (Aaawww!) - giving his views on punk rock. He looks every inch the Model of Youth here: he looks like a real dandy. Dig that eye makeup! But at the same time, he already looks (although of course he wasn't) vaguely morbid and sickly. JOLI-LAID, as the French say, as opposed to conventionally handsome.
There are two really striking moments in this interview, if you ask me. The first really striking moment comes at about 1:40, when the interviewer ask Rowland, "What do your PARENTS think, of your life-style?" and Rowland, laughing, explains, "Oh, they think I'm a WIMP..." - which I thought was hilarious, because it's just what one would expect. The second really striking moment comes near the end, at around 3:01, when the interviewer asks Rowland, "What's 'Broken Hands' about?", and Rowland - cool as a cat - shoots back, "Self-mutilation," with a little shrug, and just the barest hint of a hip sneer in his voice, like he's asking (without needing to ask out loud, of course) "How d'you like THAT?" It's the sound - and, saying it, Rowland has the look - of someone cocky, lucky, and young, someone who's on top and who's going to stay on top, someone who knows more (or thinks he knows more) than his interviewer. That hip sneer returns at 3:16, when he explains that the sort of self-mutilation described in 'Broken Hands' is "NOT as in putting a safety-pin through your lower LIP, trying to be HIP or something..." (and you can just bet Rowland was well aware of the internal rhyme of 'lip' and 'hip'; he knew he was being listened to and he wanted to sound memorable): he knew, and could see through, the cliched assumptions that the interviewer had about "punk rock", and he wanted to upend as many of these assumptions as he could, and to make them seem absurd. Rowland's whole early raison d'etre - in Model of Youth and the Young Charlatans, and in his days in The Boys Next Door - was arguably based on just this absurdifying of punk stereotypes; on putting ironic curlicues around lyrics of teenage angst and punk-rock self-destruction, playing them for arch laughs. The ultimate example of this, of course, is "Shivers" (ruclips.net/video/CDhBYixBwyQ/видео.html).
Anyway, I just wanted to say that I loved this interview. And I'll always love Rowland S. Howard. R.I.P.
wow that was very well put and heartful, I would love for you to compose my suicide note. (lmfao just kidding)
@@jetboy_ Thank you. That was very kind of you to say so. I'm a poet, so I always try to put as much care as possible into what I write. By the way, if you want to hear one of my poems, you can click here: ruclips.net/video/LnG41XLUsNU/видео.html. That's a video of me reciting a poem that I wrote *about* Rowland S. Howard (supposed to be in his voice), called "Rowland's Song." I count Rowland S. Howard - an Nick Cave, and Mark E. Smith (of the Fall) - as major poetic influences. I write poetry that aspires to the condition of rock'n'roll song; I like to think of myself as a rock'n'roll poet.
@@elizabethhann4028 you've got quite a powerful degree of articulation, a gifted individual whom applies it with expertise.
@@jetboy_ Thank you. I'm so glad that you liked my poem. Are you fond of poetry yourself? And do you do any writing of your own?
I usually don't reply to comments, but wow, this is so well written! I've probably never seen such a detailed analysis of an interview, you're very skilled, I really admire that.
And also it's always very great to see other people sharing love for Rowland, he was a wonderful and incredibly talented man.
Rest in peace, Rowland, we miss you.
Give me a time machine, I'll fly to 1977 and pump my heart to Rowland
Heeh... Was he gay?
It must have taken guts to look like that in Oz in 1977,I spent 6 months in Sydney in 1981 as a teenage Punk and had stuff thrown at me and yobbos picking fights with me nearly every day.
Same, except a little earlier. Grew up in Sydney’s Wild West, was not fun. Escaped the minute I left school
such a great soul.. wish he was alive
He is lovely... I never saw him this young before... I know that sounds daft because I am roughly the same age and lived in Berlin at the same time but he just seems so untouched..
I also never saw him as a healthy young man. I came across crime and the city solution in the early nineties and i found them remarkable.
Also the concert of shotgun wedding, when lydia lunch and rowland s. howard played in vienna 92 was great.
I think he's lovely too. He's my absolute rock idol. Do you mean you were living in Berlin at the same time he was? And did you see him then? I wish I could have seen him.
Love those refined BBC presenter style voices from Rowland and Ollie. Super nice chaps.
I love Roland's solo albums and the work he did with Htrk.
Exquisite beauty.
Thankyou for showing this
Aaaw, such sweet boys! XD
I think they're sweet too. I will always adore Rowland S. Howard, but lately I'm becoming increasingly fascinated by Ollie Olsen. He had a long and fascinating career, and he must be one of the only people to have collaborated with both Rowland S. Howard (in the Young Charlatans) and Michael Hutchence (in Max Q). I find it fascinating that Ollie worked with both Rowland and Michael.
My Dad just sent me Decline And Fall by Evelyn Waugh. R.I.P. Rowland. RIP it up man. I love the fact that like most greats he kept the same guitar & a couple of pedals & his amps. Simple set up but what he did with those few bits was just awesome. Fuckin' boss!
Reading Evelyn Waugh at 17...i didn’t appreciate Waugh till i was in my 50s. Could anyone make out the name of the other author he mentioned?
Rock writer Nik Cohn
Thanks
Why did the most handsome guy in the world die when I was 9 years old?
you are so right
Who are those two writers Rowland mentioned? I didn’t quite get their names.
Great footage. Can anyone pick up the two authors he says he likes?
Evelyn Waugh and Nik Cohn (rock journalist).
Interesting, astute analysis. I would just add that the 17 year old Rowland had little in him of the annoyingly self-conscious desire to piss off the “normals” that you hear in interviews with punk musicians and fans back then. He’s out of step with society but is so because his sensibilities are so different. It’s not just a phase.
💌💌💌💌
best
And do you know who the girls are in the video?
Wild Colonial Girl The girl in the leopard print outfit looks like fashion designer Alannah Hill who was a friend of both Rowland and Olsen.
@@emmakennedy6055 She was hot!!
and quite possibly Anita Lane in the big sunglasses
Rowland starts by saying he reads books... but at the end... he admits he used to read some books in the past...
He had a great book collection, Dave Graney in an interview stated while living at the same squat in London Rowland had the first Hunter S Thompson books he'd ever seen .
His guitar sounds more extreme than Keith Levene's. RIP
Both influenced by early krautrock bands like Neu!, perhaps?
@@mikeydread62 Not a bad comparison, I could see how Can's Michael Karoli guitar playing could be considered "totally out there" and thus extreme for it's time.
Is the 'we don't sing Pro-Nazi songs' a dig at the group Radio Birdman ?
yeah, probably just skinhead culture at the time in general too, but idk if there was actually a lot of that in melbourne yet, at the time. These two probably got roughed up a lot if there was, lol
Radio Birdman pro Nazis, are you fuckin serious?!!? I was around at the time n knew Rob Younger. I say knew coz i split Sydney for London October '89 n am still in dirty ol' London Town. I was quite surprised to read your comment referring to Birdman as pro Nazis. They never came out with shit like that n Rob never spoke to me about Nazis bollox. If i thought they lent that way in the slightest i can assure you that i n many others wouldn't have gone near em with a friggin barge pole. I wonder what put that idea in your head..... The skinhead scene was full on in Sydney n getting a kicking from them, or the suburban yobs, was something regular to look forward to.......TWATS!! Getting a kicking n beating in the 70's thru to the mid 80's was such a common occurrence it became dangerous to go out on your own. Anyone who was around at the time n dressing differently knows what i'm talking about. It was a nightmare tho i look back with pride coz it never once occurred to me that if i changed my look they'd leave me alone. Why don't you ask Rob himself if they were pro Nazis? It's doable.....🎶🍻🎸☮️🏴
Looks like a woman. He was tall though. Nick's man friend
Oh you poor old bigot. Have a bex and a lie down.