The Web of Interconnectedness

I woke up with a nagging feeling, left by the post I wrote last night after having mentioned Neil de Grasse Tyson's quote on how we are connected to the universe. The quote goes like this:

“Recognize that the very molecules that make up your body, the atoms that construct the molecules, are traceable to the crucibles that were once the centers of high mass stars that exploded their chemically rich guts into the galaxy, enriching pristine gas clouds with the chemistry of life. So that we are all connected to each other biologically, to the earth chemically and to the rest of the universe atomically. That’s kinda cool! That makes me smile and I actually feel quite large at the end of that. It’s not that we are better than the universe, we are part of the universe. We are in the universe and the universe is in us.”

I just want to clarify that Yoda said this a long time ago. He said: “Judge me by my size, do you?” If you think about it, what he meant is that no matter how big or small someone is, their connection to the universe (the force) always makes you infinitely large. Anyway...

I also hope that most people realize that this is not a new revelation, or a new thought that Neil has brought up. Carl Sagan reminds us that we are all stardust, but even before them and with less physics ancient Native Americans also were very keen to the fact that we were all part of the same organism. Even ancient buddhism knew this with the idea of the Web of Indra: "A buddhist concept of interpenetration hold that all phenomena are intimately connected; for the Huayan school, Indra's net symbolizes a universe where infinitely repeated mutual relations exist between all members of the universe."

And one doesn't need to go too far back to know that it's not such a new concept; when we consider the Gaia Theory proposed by James Lovelock around the 1960's : “The Gaia hypothesis, also known as Gaia theory or Gaia principle, proposes that all organisms and their inorganic surroundings on Earth are closely integrated to form a single and self-regulating complex system, maintaining the conditions for life on the planet.”

Yes we can take this to the stars, take it to Jupiter and beyond; but let's bring it back home. What does it mean to us, in a very real sense, that we are connected to the natural world atomically and biologically? Also, what does that imply in the sense of connections between people? If I sit here and think; well, if everybody else is made up of the same stuff, and all our thoughts and emotions have the same resonance, wouldn't that mean that we are always, constantly being shaped and shifted by the energy of everybody else? Think about the people around you, and how you influence them, they influence you and so on and on, and how we have taken the work and inspiration of countless others to create your knowledge and personality. There's always going to be a million other people around you creating your world, and you are also on the other hand part of that which creates other people's world.

Again, what I'm trying to do is bring it home. Because to me sometimes these concepts sound all good and nice, and epic, but really, what do they give us? What can I take from it and bring it to my immediate reality?

For many years, I was deeply introverted. I still am more of an introvert, but before I had somewhat of an aversion to being surrounded by many people. Music was a refuge for my introversion, but one day that all somewhat came all crashing down. I was listening to some band, and I just started to think about all the people involved in that particular activity. First, there was the band. A bunch of people I didn't know, singing loudly in my head. Then I thought about all the sound engineers, and production support for the band. Then I thought about the people involved in the distribution of the band, and even the engineers involved in the production of my music player. Suddenly, no matter what, I was surrounded by people. And that's when it hit me: You can't escape it! There's always a million people behind everything we own, everything we make our 'own'; everything we choose to represent us is actually a creation involving many minds.

So at that point, I started to think in terms of how everybody constantly has a Web of Interconnectedness around them, everybody a walking epicenter of countless connections, to people to the natural world, and to the farthest nebula. Okay, let's talk about space for a bit. Space is really exciting to think about its implication in this web of connections. For example, all the pieces of the Universe are there floating around... all those giant Nebula clouds, and all those far reaching galaxies. As Neil implies, we share their atomic make up. So in a way, even those things have some kind of relevance in your life, maybe if they weren't there, our lives wouldn't be the same. Maybe if those things weren't there, as cold and distant as they seem, life on Earth would have never had happened. What I'm trying to get to here is, that even the miracle of life on Earth had to happen through another cosmic Rube Goldberg machine-like process, starting at the big bang. We might never know what the implications of these process actually means to us, but the universe has it stored somewhere in its memory banks. Because if life is created in the universe right at the beginning of the universe, it means that explosions, and the movement of gases (which are the most randomly acting things) determined that at some point, that asteroid would've hit that planet and not that other one, and so on and on, and we get life! If it were to happen again, those explosions and gases might act differently, and instead we might've been aquatic creatures! So yeah. Asteroids. Relevant!

Let's go back to us again. Not too long ago, Aletheia (@N0C3RA on twitter) tweeted these quotes:

“You are not an isolated entity, but a unique, irreplaceable part of the cosmos. Do not forget this” -Epictetus

And also, I credit her for this one: “Loneliness is not cured by human contact, it is cured by contact reality”

I think these 2 quotes are very relevant, and the 2nd one was taken right out the tip of my tongue. If you know me personally, you probably know that for the most part I'm on my own. I'm what many would consider a lonely person, all the pieces are there... I'm not very social, I don't engage in too many romantic relationships, I love living on my own; but in my reality I'm surrounded by people and connections! In fact, sometimes more than I wish! Haha! There is people coming out of the freaking woodwork! How can I feel lonely? In fact, even on my own I feel the presence of a million others, cluttering my space! Haha! I actually don't feel lonely at all, the concept is now almost irrelevant to me. Fact of the matter is, we can't be alone. There is no way for you to be alone. So Aletheia, props to you! Reality indeed, makes us realize that we are part of not just an inter-connected human organism, but as humans we are energetically and atomically connected to the outer universe.

We are all living in this cosmic plasma. That which we call air that we take so easily for granted is like one giant mushy marshmallow that connects us. There is no space, really – it's all full; and that's something to think about when we think about the implications of the actions of our lives in society as a whole. Anything we decide to engage on leaves a mark in the physical world that who knows how many things are created or destroyed as a result. Every button press, everything we say, everything we consume, and I would even argue, every thought you have has a direct implication in the natural world and is constantly in touch with the energy that surrounds us all, influencing others and the universe too. It's all very real because it's matter.

I think even though it's very exciting and epic (and also a bit self-aggrandizing) to think that we share bits and pieces with the sun and the stars (one could write plenty poetry about this) we have to always bring it home, otherwise I don't think the idea gets you too far. Yes we are all stardust, what's next. Let's think about our connections to people, to the earth, to animals, even to our bodies. Our bodies are just like the universe, a part of nature.. they are not really yours, your creation per se. You borrow a piece of consciousness, made by nature. So before we get too far of ourselves and wonder about the implication that our farts are made up of the same stuff Jupiter's clouds are; think about the inter-connectedness of your life, the people in it, your thoughts, how your emotional state (it's all chemical and energetic) affects everyone around you. Soon we discover, that we have so much power to influence our reality, it's up to us to figure out how we want to do this.

"Enlightenment and You"

A Public Service Announcement

We've all seen it... rows and rows of self-help books promising happiness, prosperity, eternal love, bliss, enlightenment and the secret of life. Many have made big earnings selling these so called secrets, and for some odd reason some writers can keep churning out volume upon volume of these esoteric texts. This trend, the crass commercialization of these concepts and the illusion that they offer the answer to your problems is something I like to call McEnlightenment™ . The offer of an instant, spiritual happy meal (with free Buddha toy) that is so neatly packaged.

But if you're reading this, you're in for a free treat! And the reason why this is possible is because I feel that there are a few basic concepts that are really easy to grasp by anybody and don't require years of meditation or anything like that (and some of these concepts are just repeated and blown out of proportion in many of these books). I'll name a few characters that exemplify some of these concepts, although they are not the sole and only representatives.

Disclaimer: Some of these characters are controversial in their own way, some have their share of haters, and they are easy to be judged with the eye of a microscope. But when it comes to teachers, we need to look past their limitations or their most basic human traits and just listen to their teachings. I'll leave it up to you to research these characters past their teachings and judge for yourself.

Alan Watts: “You are it!” - Alan Watts is one of my favorite zen philosophers, and his main teaching is that simple: “You are it!”. You are everything you need, everything you desire is at right at your fingertips. And this is not talking about material possessions, but of that elusive happiness and bliss, that feeling of satisfaction, the feeling that you need nothing more. It's all there, it's all in front of your nose. There is no need to look any further, any more looking is a distraction. You don't need a drug, you don't need another book, you don't need that new iWhatever. It's all here, right in your hands, the more we push ourselves to look outside the less we see it. This is also a way for us to be happy with what we have, wherever we are in life. You haven't completed that ultimate project? It doesn't matter! what matters is now, and how you perceive the moment. You haven't made a million bucks yet? It doesn't even matter! The goal is to be complete now. Because once you complete that project or make a million bucks you are still going to be stuck back with your old self; and you might keep looking forever to be satisfied.

In this age of ADD internet information overdrive, it's not easy to sit back and contemplate what's in our hands. We need another link, another website, another, another, another thing. Are we ever satisfied? This rush makes us feel incomplete, like we're not attaining that illusory state of mind we seek. But it's all here, ready to go, and free – All you have to do is stop. Breathe. Listen.

Carlos Castañeda: “Seize the moment”, “Shed your identities” - Don Juan teaches us about that “split-second” opportunities that arise in life. We've all experienced those... Little moments where our intuition gets lit up and pokes at us... We either take them or leave them. For the most part they involve a certain risk, a certain invitation to jump into the void so it's easier to play it safe and never partake. But once we learn to take that risk we open up new realities. New realities arise for us when we step out of our comfort zone. They say that when a person does the thing they fear the most they will emerge a different person. And who hasn't experienced this feeling of triumph, when they finally face their fears and take action, when they are able to finally say “No more cowardice!”.

Carlos Castañeda also teaches us that all our academics, all our 'knowledge', all this scientific 'hoopla' can seriously hamper the link we have to our true self. His meetings with Don Juan many times resulted in him being ridiculed, mocked at, and just bewildered. Why? Because he was stuck with the idea that what he knew was certain and final, that his identity as a 'scholar' was enough to give him the tools he needed to figure everything out. The more we are stuck with 'final' ideas about life; these clear cut definitions of the world, the less we are able to experience it; because they are all concepts. For all our material and “civilized” means, we obviously need these concepts, but they are not the ultimate. In enlightenment there are no words, no concepts, just pure experience – and one can only start to access this by shedding all preconceived notions about our selves and the world.

There are those who consider themselves “physicalists” - those that only perceive the world through completely materialistic, scientific lenses; only through the things they can prove through the scientific method. In their eyes, physics books, neuroscience and mathematics solve everything and there is no need for more searching. Enlightenment is found in labs through microscopes and test tubes. Their knowledge is a snapshot of all the scientific journals of the day; and they have no need for anything that offers transcendence from the self, or an experience beyond rational thought. Through this way of thinking, they easily seal off any more searching, and acquire safety in their defined world of straight lines and defined identity. There is much safety to be found in the haven of pure rational thought; but in safety there are no risks... and without risks there is nothing to gain.

While we're thinking about physics and science, here is a quote by Neil De Grasse Tyson:

“Recognize that the very molecules that make up your body, the atoms that construct the molecules, are traceable to the crucibles that were once the centers of high mass stars that exploded their chemically rich guts into the galaxy, enriching pristine gas clouds with the chemistry of life. So that we are all connected to each other biologically, to the earth chemically and to the rest of the universe atomically. That’s kinda cool! That makes me smile and I actually feel quite large at the end of that. It’s not that we are better than the universe, we are part of the universe. We are in the universe and the universe is in us.”

Even a person with such a high degree of knowledge of physics and cold, factual science, gives us a glimpse at the very human experience of feeling awe at the connections in the universe. There is no actual phsyics law to prove this connection, and most knee-jerk ego attitude is to feel separated from others, separated from plants and animals. And here we have an almost 'hippie' quote by a physicist. "We're all connected, dude!"

Alejandro Jodorowsky: “Access your true self”, “Symbols and signs are everywhere”, “Ritual is a very powerful tool” - Family, society, and culture don't define human beings. Humans have suffered greatly through the creation of all these illusory identities we have given ourselves, be them racial, social, cultural, etc. There is more behind all these masks, inside each an everyone of us there is a direct link to a universal consciousness; a self beyond the ego; the self beyond individuality. This is tricky stuff; but it leads to great wisdom about how we interact with each other as humans (and more!). A good popular example of this philosophy is the introductory lyric to the famous Beatles song “I Am the Walrus” - I am he as you are he as you are me as we are all together. Or the famous mayan saying “In Lak Ech”; which more or less means “I am another you”. Everyone is as valuable as you are, we are all ultimate sacred beings, everything you cherish about your life is cherished by the person next to you; we are all like leaves grown from the same tree. With this we learn to experience life beyond the clear-cut rationality of the ego; a humbling attitude towards life and nature where we seek to find what is behind the man-made curtain we've shrouded our consciousness with. Human life is endless to explore; and those that go beyond the confines of culture and self are rewarded with great insights.

Jodorowsky is famously known for his Tarot reading skill, which he describes as a sacred work of symbolic thought; a tool to access hidden aspects of our lives (not to predict the future). Through this analysis of the symbolic, we learn that the subconscious mind communicates and learns through symbols. In the things that happen to us in daily life, there are also symbols to be found. Through careful observation, we can find synchronicity, signs and hints that help us understand our dealings in life. His own work which he calls “Psychomagic” is derived from the idea that just like in dreams, we can create completely symbolic rituals that can help us uncover aspects of our selves, emotional knots, trauma, etc. You could say that in so many ways, you can 'hack' your own mind by tricking it with objects such as golden tin-foil chocolate coins, honey, ragdolls with a picture of a parent or loved one, etc.

One realization that I had that reminds me of how we deal with the symbolic came to me one day when I was about to go to sleep. I had my eyes open, and I was looking at the ceiling lamp, then I closed my eyes. The lingering image of the lamp stayed in my mind, yet there were already thoughts being created as to what the lamp was. I realized how much we create the reality, how much we add on to our experiences through previous encoded meanings of the symbolic. For example, if you look at a photograph of a soldier, instantly many things that you attribute to soldiers come to mind... honor, patriotism, heroicism, violence, etc; which at times could be entirely disconnected from the actual experience of seeing the photograph. This is why meditation always aims to silence the mind, so that our own constant stream of thought relaxes, and lets us experience things as they are.

A great quote by Alejandro is: “Cherish your life as a thief that has stolen the most precious jewel” - Not only does it inspire us to cherish this rare opportunity that is life, but gives us some trickster happiness!

Terence McKenna: “Culture is your operating system” - Terence McKenna, a charismatic psychonaut, a proponent of psychedelic drugs as tools to access the hidden domains of the mind; which can many times result in enlightenment and a greater comprehension of the self and the natural world. I am not a fan of the word 'psychdelic' as it has a great shadow that for many people has all the implications of drug use. Another word is 'entheogen' – which describes a substance that helps us access higher levels of consciousness to touch the sacred, the divine; in contrast to using them for fun. Terence McKenna teaches us that for too long human civilization has been under the patriarchal fist of culture based on the Judeo-Christian myths. He proposes us to shed all these cultural programming, that carries with it myths of patriarchal dominance, warped gender roles and feelings of guilt over our earthly desires. The key thing to learn is that we have to inspect ourselves to learn how much we've copied/pasted social norms, indoctrination and norms that have nothing to do with who we are as human, and more to do with cultural traditions that have no root in the present.

Questions like “Why has science devoted so little to the teachings to be gained from entheogens?” make us realize that the deep crevices of the mind have eluded us throughout history and we live in a culture that promotes paying attention to things outside ourselves and not to our inner selves. It also goes to show that we are generally afraid of things we can't understand, things we can't easily observe. We'd rather stick to what we can see and what we know, where we feel safe, rather than go deep into our minds, afraid to find some scary secrets. Many of these substances are illegal, and one has to wonder why... Why something like a 'magic' mushroom, which can grow naturally in many places is considered illegal. In my opinion, the state doesn't want people to have experiences that will dismantle their cultural programming; all the patriotism, the fascination with military might, the machismo, the religious myths, the hungry consumer culture... many of these things lose their power and become caricatures when one is able to open their third eye. Imagine what this could mean to the state, that wants us all to be obedient, flag-waving consumers?

There is a downside to the 'psychedelic' approach, and I've seen many end up relying too much on the experiences these substances offer. When you no longer have the capacity to achieve any of these states on your own, by your own wit and observation, you are giving the capacity of the mind a disservice. Yes, you can enjoy the benefits of heightened states of minds sober, the mind is a wonderful thing, it can take you where you want to go as long as it has a map or you give it directions. Another thing to be aware of is that no description of the experiences these things offer ever do justice to the actual feeling of being in it, having a previous definition could only hamper what you might get out of it, as expectations can become an obstacle.

Society deems the mention of this taboo, but we only have to stop being hypocritical and realize that they been around for a long time, and even major technology and entertainment figures that have created big pillars of society have found the secrets within them of utmost significance.

Now, the thing that matters the most is that these ideas need to be put into practice into real life, they require work – you can't just read about it and then expect to see the benefit. Like a Zen riddle, they are ways for us to step into the process but not the answer. There is no easy path, and even though they can be grasped instantly; the process is life-long. That's why it's so ridiculous to think that one can buy a book at Barnes & Noble, finish reading it and walk away a saint, an enlightened avatar that has discovered the secret of life. And through this process, one is able to find what works for your particular situation, mold it to your necessities; and have your own realizations.

There is always a contradiction that I face when I write, or talk about these ideas. One of my favorite quotes ever is “Those who know, do not speak. Those who speak, do not know.” (Lao Tzu) Rather than me promoting an entitled sense of enlightenment, the idea is that this is always about experience, not regurgitation of concepts. So, the ones that only talk, talk, talk and never walk the walk are just dogs barking divine nothingness. It all comes down to experience; and if you reach enlightment there would be no words to describe it! Every abstract concept we come across in life can only be tested in the immediate reality; abstraction gives us the key, but we still need to open the doors.

There are countless other authors and philosophers I have omitted here, but they should not be hard to find once one is on the path to learn more. Youtube might be a great way to sample some of the teachings of these thinkers straight from their mouth. I didn't include many of the more 'meaty' writers, such as D.T. Suzuki on Zen, only because I didn't want to get too stuffy with all the nooks and crannies of concepts such as 'sunyata', 'nirvana', etc; BUT I definitely recommend learning from a variety of sources.

Days after I started writing this blog entry, a great article showed up on “Reality Sandwich”; called “Dynamic Paradoxicalism” which I think offers plenty ideas to expand our consciousness toward a more enlightened outlook. What I like about this way of thinking, is that it promotes flexibility in the mind; the realization that being stuck with any kind of rigid mental structure (liberal or conservative) limits us and separates us. Being open minded also means being able to move beyond our usual comfort zone, it's not limited to just being tolerant of other ways of thinking.

In conclusion, we can always be more than what we think we can be. Life is our ultimate, most precious borrowed possesion, and every experience, from the mundane to the most divine, has plenty of meaning in store for us. The quest for enlightenment won't make you Superman, it won't give you mental powers or make you a saintly human being that is above others. On the contrary, it might make you a simpler, more compassionate and humble person. We can shed our own mental parasites, even though we might have been attached to them emotionally for many years. We can learn to access an enduring happiness that is not based on material possessions, physical features, or even relationships with other people; as well as able ourselves to go beyond our own mental and emotional black lagoons.

Surfing the Collective Unconscious/Conscious

This blog entry is an exploration of my relationship with music and some trends that have emerged through my life; and the possibility of it all being part of one big scheme, as we are all part of the human collective mind.

It all started with this:

Back in the 90's, I was an avid SNES gamer. I was also gifted with some creativity, so when Mario Paint came out I was soon all over its animation and music-making capacities. Soon I was making little jingles, animations to go with them and pretty much spending hours doodling away. This started an ongoing interest in music making through sequencing programs, which led me to my all time favorite FL Studio (called Fruity Loops back then). I made a few terrible songs that I showed off to my friends, most of which would say "cool, dude" without a hint of enthusiasm.

Then in 1999 I left my home town of Puebla, Mexico to create a new life for myself in the United States; I was 19 years old. Austin, Texas was my first destination. There are a few good memorable stories from this time, one of which includes me waking up after a drunken blackout surrounded by police cars and a cop checking my pulse; and my friend next to me telling the cops that he'll take care of me and I'll be alright. Another story is about hitching a ride from a complete stranger in the rain, after which the stranger offered me money so he could blow me. Yeah.

In any case, during this time I spent a lot of hours working at my own musical creations in Fruity Loops. Most of my songs were original content, and at this point I had already started adding real guitar samples to my songs and so many ideas and enthusiasm for the craft, although not enough talent to make the songs noteworthy. Around this time, I also started making my own versions of old NES classics; especially from Megaman and Ninja Gaiden. It has to be noted that I didn't know of anybody else, or had ever heard anybody else do this. To me this was something that I just did for myself, as the Nintendo midis were not "spiffy" enough - and through Fruity Loops I could change the instruments, add cooler drum beats, and overall spiff up the songs to my taste. Unfortunately, the lack of knowledge and engineering skills was always an obstacle for me; to the extreme that my first songs were MANUALLY TRANSCRIBED from listening to midi files note by note. I still have a notepad somewhere where I'm writing down by hand each and every single note to create the sequence. Now I just import the midi file straight into Fruity Loops and all that work is done for me.

The only other artist in my area of knowledge that was doing something similar was Atom and His Package - he was a huge inspiration for me to make 'home-made' punk with sequencers and guitars. (Now I know that MiniBosses was started around 1999 - but unfortunately I never heard about them until the late 2000s, another reason for me to believe that this was all starting around the same time) The name for my project was "Munch-Up"; honestly, inspired by the name of the fan-service friendly anime "Burn-Up" and a thing for 'eating' beats. That was the simple logic behind the name. Many of my early "Munch-Up" art was a throwback to pixel art; again, it was rare that anybody did pixel art to be 'hip' and 'retro' during this time - if anything, it was barely starting and I unfortunately was not able to enjoy this kind of art by anybody else. If it existed, I didn't know about it. Here are some old school Munch Up goodies:

A great song that was originally all sampler instruments, which I added a guitar solo a few years later, probably the best example of early Munch Up music and my later guitar additions:

Munch Up "seesaw"

Next, are 2 songs that became my first 2 original songs with lyrics, as well as a more metallic edge I wanted in the sound. I didn't want to necessarily make 'pretty' music. Before the internet went crazy for cats, I wrote "PxSxOxBxC" (Protective Spirit of Black Cat) and "Neko-Bot" (Neko means 'cat' in Japanese). To commemorate this worship of all things cat, here is an animated gif I made circa 2002 and the 2 songs for your enjoynment:

Munch Up - PxSxOxBxC

Munch Up - Neko Bot

PxSxOxBxC

Protective Spirit of Black Cat!

It will live next to my soul

Majestic Velvet Coat

Shimmering with lights

With a proud, elegant face.

Infinitely deep green eyes

Resting on a brightly colored pillow

It will bring peace to my soul

Protects me from aggressive jealousy

Neko-Bot

Fucked up, backwards-ass culture

Pretty packaged all the time

To sell your fucking lies and bullshit

Plastified Humanity

Brightly Colored Stupidity

Robotized depletion of the human soul

Nothing matters, its a matter of mass consumption

x2

I came here all the way to see you smile

But there was no one inside that face

Just a face hiding the fluorescent light

..dormant.. ..sleeping..

Here are a few more elaborated, more fusion, less 'midi' creations, as I actually wanted Munch Up to be more punk/metal than chip:

Munch Up "Transience"

Munch Up "Xezqual" (Xezqual later on went to become the name for my latest music project)

Munch Up "No Nukes"

Munch Up "Scram"

Next are 2 songs that I can honestly say give me the credit to say that I was "Seapunk" before the term was even created. Last Sunday I found out about this term reading an article in the New York Times! I figures it must be pretty relevant if it made it there... Now, before you call me the the ultimate hipster, let's think about this for a second. Seapunk is a term that was coined by someone that apparently had a dream about having barnacles instead of 'studs' in their punk jacket. Whoever this person was, was huge in the twitter/tumblr-sphere and has spawned hundreds of animated gifs featuring dolphins, and really cheesy 90's CG. All things aqua from the 90s are worshipped, as well as ying-yang symbols and so on and so on. There is even a little bit of rave culture in there too. Most of the people that are into this seem to be teenage girls; which create a persona for being heavy psychedelic drug users and just overall 'out-there'. Here are a few notable examples... The crazy youth of today.. lol:

http://satanizm.tumblr.com/

http://mermaidcreeps.tumblr.com/

http://alienchildd.tumblr.com/

http://eternally-blissful.tumblr.com/

http://holyvirginmary.tumblr.com/

Now, around 2005 I was playing with the idea that nature could be brutal in its beauty too. Why did all punk songs have to be about being angry against the machine? No one ever sang about the beauty of dolphins, or sea-lions. So I wrote a few songs dedicated to sea-life; and even started a whole new project called Nematocyst (it's the organ that Jellyfish use to inject venom into their prey) that was completely dedicated to the sea. Now, Tumblr is full of animated Gifs about jellyfish and how trippy they are. 7 Years ago I had already written songs about this, around 2007 made a neon animated gif off Jellyfish I filmed at the San Diego aquarium. After you listen to these songs, read the lyrics to Swift, and look at the art, tell me if there was some Seapunk in there or not. Probably not the 'seapunk' that is more Sponge-Bob than substance of today, but in the sense that it was a marriage of subculture music and the sea.

Munch Up - Swift

"Swift"

There is no way to comprehend

There is just so much to be amazed

The energy that flows in this place

There is no end, except the one you're fabricating!

Why do you want to take away my place?

Why do you want to consume our lives?

Why are you so careless and arrogant!?

Swift... like the waves in the ocean

Swift... like the ripples in the water

Swift... like the wind blowing in front of me

... Swift ...

("Swift" is my absolute, most favorite song I did for Munch Up)

Munch Up - Sea Tempest

Nematocyst - Sea Monster

After Munch Up and Nematocyst, the working life had already sucked me in, and much of the passion and creativity that I had to make this kind of music had been sort of 'partitioned' into my video-game art and other interests. I created the experimental synth project called Xezqual (MySpace) . I have since abandoned it and have lost much interest in pursuing this; as it had always been some kind of self-entertainment I did to get stoned and drunk to. The proliferation of indie-hipster music done with synthesizers, and the modern era of retro/chip-tune worship makes me feel very demotivated to partake in any of this, as I have no energy to try to be cool, trendy or capitalize off any subculture - Also, I am more of a video-game artist than a musician and I need to pay bills. None of my music has ever been released officially and not one single mp3 has ever been made to be for sale. There are no pictures of me looking all cool and slick with Nintendo controllers and dark frame glasses, nor there will ever be. I have a special place in my heart for many NES songs but the craze was over for me many years ago. I am 30 years old and am more comfortable knowing that the faceless, fractal and cold sounds of Psy-Trance are there to please my earbuds with the entheogenic frequencies that are in it if I need to listen to electronic sounds. I listen to mostly death metal, punk rock and psy-trance; as nostalgic modern chip tune music seems to me more of a novelty than a serious proposition. I've also learned to embrace other forms of music, get out of my 'triad' of insanity for a while; seriously enjoying the prog-metal sounds of Zombi, the political tribal beats of Fela Kuti, and all kinds of other artists; as well as enjoying all the classics like Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, etc.

I am a believer that humanity does share that which Carl Jung called the "collective subconscious" ; the idea that many ideas and creativity can reside at the same time but in different places - some kind of psychic internet of humanity. You might think you have a new idea, but maybe you are only "downloading" information from this pool of thought, without knowing it. Or maybe, you are creating valuable ideas and finding creative solutions, those which get "uploaded" without you ever realizing. Joseph Campbell analyzed this phenomenon in his "Myth" books, studying how certain patterns, ideas about 'dragons' and other symbols emerged in human culture that was never in touch with one another around the same time. After my own anaylisis of the music I wanted to create, the notes I wanted to hit with Munch Up, Nematocyst and Xezqual; I am convinced that I was part of a collective movement without knowing it. I do have a desire to keep making music, but for me it has always been about doing what's in your heart. I might decide to make a psy-trance song, or a crust punk song with synthesizers in it; it doesn't matter to me if it fits the needs of particular sub-cultures or genres as long as I'm doing what comes out of my soul naturally.

I find the current trends interesting though, there is a part of me that really likes these new offshoots and animated-gif subcultures, but now I feel more like the old parent that just chuckles, than the excited kid that goes "awesome!". I still devote my entire self and energy to creative endeavors, they have only taken other shapes, and I am constantly aiming to 'upload' and 'download' all kinds of awesomeness from the collective mind.