Devendra Banhart Biography
Young singer-songwriter Devendra Banhart has made a name for himself in independent music by performing barefoot with flowers in his hair. An old hippie soul trapped in a youthful body, Banhart found himself part of a new scene dubbed "neo-folk" or "anti-folk," a group of like-minded musicians who use folk music as a blueprint to create postmodern rock 'n' roll. By his early twenties, Banhart was drawing comparisons from critics that ran the gamut from Marc Bolan to Nick Drake, Syd Barrett and even Tiny Tim (thanks to his warbling falsetto). With three releases under his smock in only two years, Banhart has a long future ahead of him, even if his eccentric looks put him on the fringes of the mainstream music community.
Born in Texas on May 30, 1981, Banhart's unusual first name was chosen by an Indian spiritual teacher whom his parents admired. When his parents divorced, Banhart and his mother relocated to Caracas, Venezuela, where he spent his adolescent years. After his mother remarried, Banhart moved again, this time to Los Angeles. He had been composing songs since his early teens, but never performed his work in public. Art, it seemed, was Banhart's true passion throughout childhood and he won a scholarship to the prestigious San Francisco Art Institute to continue his studies. Serendipity would step in, however, and alter Banhart's destiny. During his education, Banhart found himself living with a gay couple, whom he nicknamed Jerry Elvis and Bob the Crippled Comic. It was the faith of this couple that gave Banhart his first public performance--the couple's wedding. Banhart remembers that ceremony as his first official show. "I played my own adaptation of 'How Great Thou Art' and 'Love Me Tender,'" he wrote in his own biography for Young God Records.
With his first taste of playing to others, Banhart, who was studying interdisciplinary art in college, eventually dropped out. By now an accomplished musician and artist, Banhart sought inspiration in Paris in the summer of 2000. These cosmopolitan travels and experiences led to a musical sound that echoed a peculiar drifter and resonated somewhere between lo-fi blues and acoustic British and American folk all wrapped up with ardent yet bizarre lyrics. Jim Haynes of the Wire summed up Banhart's sound as, "... Using voice, guitar and (a) four track, his raw songcraft is terrifyingly effective at communicating the breadth of human emotion."
Born in Texas on May 30, 1981, Banhart's unusual first name was chosen by an Indian spiritual teacher whom his parents admired. When his parents divorced, Banhart and his mother relocated to Caracas, Venezuela, where he spent his adolescent years. After his mother remarried, Banhart moved again, this time to Los Angeles. He had been composing songs since his early teens, but never performed his work in public. Art, it seemed, was Banhart's true passion throughout childhood and he won a scholarship to the prestigious San Francisco Art Institute to continue his studies. Serendipity would step in, however, and alter Banhart's destiny. During his education, Banhart found himself living with a gay couple, whom he nicknamed Jerry Elvis and Bob the Crippled Comic. It was the faith of this couple that gave Banhart his first public performance--the couple's wedding. Banhart remembers that ceremony as his first official show. "I played my own adaptation of 'How Great Thou Art' and 'Love Me Tender,'" he wrote in his own biography for Young God Records.
With his first taste of playing to others, Banhart, who was studying interdisciplinary art in college, eventually dropped out. By now an accomplished musician and artist, Banhart sought inspiration in Paris in the summer of 2000. These cosmopolitan travels and experiences led to a musical sound that echoed a peculiar drifter and resonated somewhere between lo-fi blues and acoustic British and American folk all wrapped up with ardent yet bizarre lyrics. Jim Haynes of the Wire summed up Banhart's sound as, "... Using voice, guitar and (a) four track, his raw songcraft is terrifyingly effective at communicating the breadth of human emotion."
Profile
Born on May 30, 1981, in TX; raised in Caracas, Venezuela.
Education: Attended the San Francisco Art Institute.
Education: Attended the San Francisco Art Institute.
Contact Information
Address: Record company--Young God Records, P.O. Box 150-031 Van Brunt Station, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Website: http://www.younggodrecords.com
Website: http://www.younggodrecords.com
Back
Top