Henry Rollins Clarifies New Project With Ian MacKaye, And It’s Not What Fans Expected

What looked like a dream collaboration between Henry Rollins and Ian MacKaye has turned out to be something very different.

After fans lit up at news that the Black Flag icon and Fugazi frontman had entered the studio together, Rollins has now clarified that the project doesn’t feature any new music, or either of them performing. In a post on his website, Rollins explained that the sessions at Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, the same room where both artists cut their earliest hardcore records, were not for a new collaboration, but for the remastering of a 1979 demo by another, still unnamed, legendary punk band.

“Before anything else, I think I need to clear something up,” Rollins wrote. “The tracks we mixed were not a collaborative effort, besides the mixing itself. I am not on the tape. Ian is not on the tape. Neither of us are on the tape.”

According to Rollins, the tape had been recently unearthed and required delicate preservation before it could be remastered.

“What we were working on was a demo, recorded in 1979, by a legendary punk band that recently came into my possession. I had the tape baked and transferred by Pete Lyman at Infrasonic Sound in Nashville, and had him send the tracks to Ian so he could take them to Inner Ear and get them loaded in.”

Rollins went on to describe the process with the kind of detail only a lifer could bring: eight tracks on one-inch tape, “fantastic” performances, and minimal tweaking required. Once the mixes were finalised, they sent the material back to Pete Lyman for mastering.

“I contacted a member of the band and asked if I could release the tracks. I got permission and started preparing the tracks for release,” Rollins said. “We’ll be releasing the demo as soon as possible as a four-song 12-inch.”

The release will arrive via In The Red Records, the label Rollins has partnered with for several reissues and rare punk pressings in recent years.

For those hoping for a proper Rollins–MacKaye reunion, this revelation may sting, but it’s also a reminder that both remain devoted to preserving punk’s raw, historical DNA.

The 1979 demo is expected to drop soon through In The Red Records.