This week’s herd of new releases is led by the latest efforts from two artists who seem to occupy opposite ends of the pop-culture spectrum: the ever-macho Henry Rollins [ tickets ] and the ever-unisex Boy George [ tickets ]. Their new releases, however, feature both artists in roles that neither is most well-known for; Rollins’ latest is a spoken-word disc, while George’s new opus features him showcasing his DJ skills.

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Henry Rollins serves up the latest helping of his spoken-word material this week on “Rollins in the Wry” (Quarterstick). The scatological disc features the muscle-bound punk-rock icon riffing on everything from his disdain for poets to former President Clinton to his travels through Europe.

“Rollins in the Wry” was recorded over the course of a two-month period, during which Rollins performed at the same club every Wednesday night for one month and every Tuesday night for one month. In a recent interview with LiveDaily, Rollins explained how the sessions--of which only 64 minutes were used for the disc--resulted in plenty of leftover material.

“[There’s], like, another 18 hours of s--- sitting on [tape] half-life-ing in my closet,” said Rollins. “After I’m caught abducting teenage girls out of strip malls, shaking down pensioners and dealing crack to preteens--which I do weekly--when I get busted for that and become infamous, maybe this stuff will come to light when I need all the money for the lawyers.”

Rollins’ spoken-word tour in support of the new disc gets underway this month, and is scheduled to run through mid-April. Other 2001 plans include the next Rollins Band CD--which is expected to drop sometime in May--and a subsequent tour with the group.

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Boy George, best known in the U.S. for helming ‘80s-era pop sensation Culture Club, has made a name for himself in recent years on the U.K. club circuit as a premier DJ. This week’s “Essential Mix” (London-Sire) is George’s latest release, and it highlights his work on the turntables.

The new disc features 18 tracks by various artists that were mixed by George, including “See You Through” by Cultural Diversions--a.k.a. Culture Club--on which George sings.

In his latest record company bio, George talked about the challenge he faced in trying to reinvent himself from a gender-bending pop singer to a legitimate club DJ in the U.K., particularly in light of what he described as the British audience’s inherent reluctance to accept such a rebirth.

"It's a real British thing," he said. "Once you've had your go, whatever it may be, they want you to piss off, and they can't bear it if you come back, they can't bear it. They'd prefer to hear about you having a turn on the cabaret circuit."

George is in the midst of a brief U.S. club tour to promote the album.

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New York rock quartet the Rosenbergs deliver their debut, “Mission: You,” on Discipline Global Mobile this week. In a special Napster-related promotion, the first 10,000 copies of the album will actually contain two copies of the disc; buyers are being asked to share the extra copy--dubbed a “Napster copy”--with a friend. The controversial file-sharing network is also sponsoring the group’s upcoming tour, which kicked off earlier this month.

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New Hampshire natives the Queers return this week with a five-song EP titled “Today” (Lookout!). The release features four band originals, as well as a cover of the Beach Boys’ “Salt Lake City.”

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