The Kickstarter project to facilitate the completion of the feature-length documentary film Voice of the Enigma: The Enigma of Robbie Basho is now underway. Pete Townshend of The Who has confirmed that he will be appearing in the film as an interview subject.
The documentary concerns the extraordinary life and visionary music of the the American guitarist and singer Robbie Basho, whose music was as equally as outlandish as his persona.
Orphaned during infancy, diagnosed with synaesthesia (a union of the senses that caused him to interpret sound as colour); Basho claimed to be the reincarnation of a 17th century poet and died at the age of 45 due to a freak accident caused by his holistic chiropractor.
Despite laying the foundation for radical changes to the musical landscape of America during the 60s and 70s, Basho reaped little more than a small (if fervent) following during his lifetime.
Voice of the Eagle: The Enigma of Robbie Basho is a journey into the heart of an artist’s lifelong struggle, designed to illuminate existing fans while serving as a perfect starting point for the uninitiated.
In the decades since his death, no previous attempt to document Basho has been made – the almost baffling scarcity of information on his life and lack of archive material material being an obvious stumbling block. With Basho’s small but dedicated following continuing to grow and a more widespread revival a tangible possibility (particularly in light of the recent success of Searching for Sugar Man), it is surely an auspicious time for his unique music and life story to be evoked through documentary.
Self-funded entirely to date by director Liam Barker, Voice of the Eagle: The Enigma of Robbie Basho features interviews with Basho’s former students, contemporaries and few close friends including Pete Townshend of The Who, Grammy award-winning guitarist William Ackerman and Oscar-nominated producer of Werner Herzog’sEncounters at the End of the WorldHenry Kaiser amongst others.
Official website:www.robbiebashofilm.com
Kickstarter URL:http://www.kickstarter.com/
