I was going over through the all-so-charming/embarrassing archives of my last blog, and had found out that I had not written anything in over three years.
What has changed between now and then?
Nothing with me, personally.
I'm still the same loser.
Seriously.
Nothing's changed.
However, the world has changed! Attention spans have certainly changed. If you have made it this far into this blog post, please give yourself a pat on the back. The way we share information is now being limited to a handful of words, hashtags, pictures, and 15 second videos.
I'm not going to be a pretentious dickhead and tell you whether or not this is some sort of moral game of "good" and "bad"; it simply just is what it is.
I've read so many blogs/tweets/status updates that began with: "UGH. I HATE BLOGGERS." "TL;DR" has become the standard response for anything more than a sentence. Again, this has nothing to do with people's intelligences; it just really is the technology of the times. I'd be no different than the jerk who got upset when writing was first invented, and thought: "Pfft. Books! Now people don't have to remember anything. Everyone's gonna be dumb as shit."
(On a side note: I do think we're more "buffet consumers" of information than we are "connoisseurs" of information, but that's an entirely different discussion that is neither here or there.)
What does this have to do with anything? Nothing really. I just thought we'd touch base and reacquaint ourselves with one another before proudly announcing the reboot of The Moon Jelly House of Fun!
For those already familiar, welcome back! You may skip a couple of chunks.
For the majority of you, here it goes.
The Moon Jelly House of Fun is the all-encompassing label for the arts and merriment of myself, Kevin Ng. The painful follow-up question you're probably asking is "Why in the blue hell is a guy in his mid-20s still doing art and music? Hasn't the real world crushed him by now?"
The truth is: I have been crushed. In fact, I've been crushed on so many levels, but I really can't seem to stop myself from doing it. It is both my life force and my unhealthy compulsion. So far, my projects have included music, comics, short stories, and film.
So basically, what I'm doing is that I'm creating art, and releasing it to an over-saturated scene. I've pretty much given up any semblance that I will ever make any profit on this, but that's okay. That's not why I do it anyways.
Here's the rundown on stuff that I've been working on:
MUSIC - BOOTLEGS OF THE UNTITLED BAND
- I opened up a ReverbNation with select tracks:
"Death and the Moon Goddess Take Me Away."
"SUV/Roadkill." [LIVE]
"Stuck In Traffic on the 405." [Garage Practice Session.]
"L'Espirit D'Escalier."
- It's not quite creatively where I want to be yet. Anyone who's heard the past decade of strange demos knows what I'm talking about. I'm a perfectionist, but I have some realistic standards. I'm not settling on just being "good." It needs to be "great." I've always prided myself on a hard work ethic; the lazy slob when it comes to music is just everyone's perception.
- Our next show is on July 25th at Rebel Bite in Long Beach. After that, I'm helping run a show in August for my friend's birthday. (I've learned over the years that the only way I'll be able to get a show is if I run it myself.)
- Been having a dry spell on writing songs. I still write a lot, but none of it really sticks with me at the moment. Truth be told, I really should just sit down and record.
- I've tried all means of DIY promotion. I refuse to cave in and hire a manager, so I'm going to try something new: not promote. (Okay. I won't do that.)
COMIC - DISSECT MY BRAIN
- I'm still working on this at a snail's pace. I did finish 2 pages yesterday. That felt good.
- The goal is still release a follow-up to last year's "Life Support Zine." The theme will be on drugs and medicine. I've been drawing this mock, anti-DRUG PSAs. They're not really pro or anti drugs; they're just really lampooning how goofy the whole Reagan, "War on Drugs" campaign got. Regardless if you're for or against them, I'm going to peer pressure you into believing that anyone that peer pressures you into anything is an asshole.
- The full length Dissect My Brain? Man. I'd be lucky if that's finished before I die.
MOVIES - MOON JELLY HOUSE OF FUN, REVMAN GAMING
-I haven't been working on films. I've always loved the reception I've received for my work, even though everything I've done has been a "glorified home movie." In the meantime, just watch that 2-year old, glorified clips show I did:
-Again, it's a lot like anything I do; it has to be just right. There's a lot of people who want to work with me, but it's finding the right project that would work with these people. I'd also love to take it to the next level and do some legit film work with perfect lights and sound.
- I have been teaming up with Mike "RevMan" Revis for RevMan Gaming. We shot a short series of "Road to EVO." You can check out his YouTube channel here. Not much to say here: it's just us playing fighting games. (I make a lot of bad jokes!) I'm more of a 90's/early 2000s player, and we've barely touched any of those games. . . so just expect me to suck, tremendously.
On another note, I play bass in the band, Marker, now. There's really not a good story of how it happened; I was more or less asked to do it, and I went and did it. I really do like the songs, and it's an excuse to hear them. . . even if I do mess them up at times. It's also been a pretty relaxed commitment, which has been nice. I honestly never thought I'd end up playing bass again, 'cause the last time I did it, it really 'caused a lot of problems for me. The guys in this band respect me, which is really nice.
But yes, I do play in Marker, so go check them out here. My personal favorite song we do? "Frustration, Disappointment." (Of course, I WOULD say it's all good but also really recommend "Half Full of Shit.")
Also, this happened outside of our last show at Ham and Eggs Tavern:
That's it for now.
As always, I leave you with the question: what would YOU like to see out of The Moon Jelly House of fun?
If you'd like to help me out, I'd totally appreciate more stockholders. (NOTE: There's no money involved.) I've worked with so many great collaborators over the years, but I've yet to find anyone who's super down to join in the Moon Jelly Vision.
Then again, it's super easy to just start up your own label. Everyone thinks they're a critic and a writer these days, why not you?
In fact, just do that instead.
- Kevin Ng
