support the documentary about hr (of bad brains): hr “finding joseph i”

Afropunk Fam, you may remember that we told you a few years ago about a project to make a documentary about (and with) Bad Brains frontman HR. The production team Small Axe Films launched a Kickstarter page to help finish the project. It will feature new music by HR himself! See info below and feel free to support this documentary via Kickstarter: www.kickstarter.com/projects/hrdocumentary/hr-finding-joseph-i.

Notes from the production:
“HR “Finding Joseph I” is a feature documentary currently in production, chronicling the eccentric life and struggles of punk rock reggae singer, Paul “HR” Hudson, a.k.a. Joseph I. The charismatic frontman’s energetic and explosive live performances helped pioneer hardcore punk rock with the Bad Brains, one of the most influential bands to rise out of the 1980’s. HR’s heavy devotion to the Rastafarian faith guided him in a spiritual direction leaving the band several times to explore his love for reggae music as the solo artist, HR Human Rights. Over the years, the Bad Brains have reunited several times only to struggle with the unpredictable singer. HR’s increasingly strange and abnormal behavior has left many convinced that he his suffering from psychological troubles while others believe he is still living out his journey as one of the greatest frontmen in rock and roll history!
This documentary will feature interviews with musicians and peers HR has worked with and influenced as they share their stories and first hand experiences. Most importantly we will hear from HR himself about his life, philosophies, and career while seeing him continue to write, record, and perform, spreading his passionate message of universal peace and love. Help us tell the story of what is one of the most inspirational if not misunderstood musicians of this era!
New original music with the documentary:
In February of 2012, the production crew traveled to Jamaica with HR where he began recording with music producer Mao Clemmons. HR dubbed the collaboration “Project Livity”. As part of our Kickstarter rewards, we will be releasing an EP on vinyl! You will be able to get this record exclusively through our Kickstarter campaign so don’t miss your chance. This is all new original music! Vinyl will be sequentially numbered and never pressed again! HRdocumentary.com/music.
We’re in the process of making the film, but need your help in order to finish it. We are aiming to raise funds to pay for the remaining shooting schedule as well as post production cost such as editing, audio mixing and mastering, color correction, illustrations/animation, and motion graphics. In addition there are some additional expenses needed to finish the soundtrack/record as well as legal fees. We are also hoping to exceed our goal to create a budget for music licensing. We need to cover the enormous expense of acquiring licensing rights to what we think are important elements of the story. Along with the heavy expenses of acquiring licensing rights, come all the high costs of putting together an independent DIY film of this size. “

Banner photo by Steven Hanner