User:Mason Fr/sandbox

= MANGCHI (band) =

MANGCHI, meaning Hammer in Korean, is an American rock band based in Los Angeles, California. The group formed in 2014 through the podcast DVDASA, lead by David Choe and Asa Akira. The band is currently composed of David Choe (drums, vocals), Steve Lee (lead vocals), and Money Mark (keyboard, production). The band often includes many other members, notably: Heather Leather (bass guitar), James Jean (keyboard), Dylan the Kid (drums), and Tommy Guerrero (lead guitar). MANGCHI is known for its experimental punk sound, costumes, body paint, face paint, and their limited, one-time tour. Inspired by everyone from Bob Marley to New Kids on the Block to Fugazi, MANGCHIi's sound is loud, experimental, and raw. John Cusack stated that their music both sounded like "a fart from a child born without a butthole", and “If korn, depeche mode and the beastie boys were forced in a bus together to tour north korea, and all their lead singers quit in the middle of the tour, and the band picked up the korean versions of Debbie Gibson, Stacey-Q, and buddy Holly to replace the singers who just happened to be hitchhiking on The north korean countryside road, and then they all got in a tour bus accident and all got whiplash and broken bones, but Kim JONG UN made them play a show anyways with broken necks right on the side of road using the broken car parts as instruments over the non-existent ambulance sirens, that’s the closest I can get to describing the MANGCHI sound…. So basically listening to GOD’s voice as he’s hitting puberty… so basically Art.”

Formation
Choe always had musical aspirations alongside his art, forming a band in high-school called "Koreans Gone Bad" (also known as: KGB), with his best friend and co-collaborator on Vice Media show Thumbs Up! Harry Kim. Nearly 20 years later, after meeting Bobby Lee's brother, Steve Lee, and learning that Lee created music as a hobby, Choe decided to further pursue music. Money Mark, Steve Lee, and David Choe originally founded the band, recording their first album in Big Bear Lake, California, in a rented ranch. The name MANGCHI means Hammer in Korean; Choe stated that the reasoning behind the name of the band is "because it means hammer and because it's fucking time", not providing much real context. The band was formed in 2014, and released music in 2014 during their initial recording sessions, and again in 2016. Steve Lee as the lead vocalist was tasked with most, if not all of the songwriting, while Mark produced the music, with Choe leading as artistic director, and drummer. The band had one tour, issuing a statement that "there has never been and will never be another tour like this again".

First Recordings (EEGA MOYA, NEGA MOLA)
David Choe, after feeling creatively burned out, and emotionally stunted by the constant motion of Los Angeles, rented a secluded ranch in Big Bear Lake, California. There, he recorded dozens of hours of solo podcasts, and developed his first watercolor paintings, which he is now most recognized for. Nearing the end of his month long stay there, Choe invited the cast of DVDASA to record the final 8 episodes of Saga 1, following which every member left, except for Money Mark, Choe, and Steve Lee. The three proceeded to write, produce, and record EEGA MOYA, and NEGA MOLA, their first two albums.

David Choe
Also known as Igloo Hong in the band, David Choe, one of, if not the richest artist alive due to his deal with Sean Parker in the early days of Facebook, is the primary founder of MANGCHI. Choe co-hosted a wild, controversial podcast called DVDASA (also known as: David & Asa, or Double Vag, Double Ass, Sensitive Artist), with Asa Akira. After interviewing serial guest Bobby Lee, intrigue over his brother grew, and Steve Lee was introduced to Choe, and DVDASA. Quickly, Choe became enchanted with Steve Lee's voice, and decided to finally create the band he had been dreaming of since childhood, with the help of Money Mark, another serial guest.

Steve Lee
Steve Lee, the younger brother of Bobby Lee, is best known for his work on MANGCHI and the Steebee Weebee show, as well as his solo music projects. Steve Lee's daily life was fairly unsubstantial in comparison to the other members of DVDASA, skating to Ralphs every day, looking at soap bars, playing FIFA until 6am, and occasionally holding a job. Once introduced to the cast of DVDASA and capturing the eye of David Choe, Steve Lee was presented the opportunity to join MANGCHI as the lead singer.

Money Mark
Mark Ramos Nishita, better known as Money Mark, is most famous for his extensive production on many of the Beastie Boys albums. Nishita has worked with countless artists, ranging from Die Antwoord to Linkin Park to Beck. He became a principal collaborator of the Beastie Boys after building their studio, and fixing their fence while working as a carpenter. Nishita's help in being a founder of MANGCHI, as well as the primary producer for MANGCHI, was enlisted near the end of Saga 1 of Choe's podcast DVDASA.

James Jean
James Jean is a prolific visual artist, known for his detailed and colorful murals, and his imaginative composition. Jean has worked for Time (magazine), Prada, Rolling Stone, Linkin Park, DC Comics, and many other companies. He began his career as a comic book artist, later transitioning into the fine art world. Jean is much lesser known for his musical talent, as discovered formally on episode 93 of DVDASA. Jean originally was interested in music, practicing jazz trumpet all the way until applying to the New York School of Visual Arts. Jean met Choe through work, and was introduced as a guest on DVDASA after renting space out of Choe's warehouse, which the podcast was initially based out of.

Heather Leather
While filming Thumbs Up! Season 4, a travel show pioneered by David Choe and Harry Kim, Choe met Heather Leather (also known as: Ashley Dzerigian, Ashley Reeve, or Heather Hotdog, for her love of hotdogs). Dzerigian has played bass for Adam Lambert, Maximum Hedrum, CeeLo Green, My Jerusalem, Money Mark, Great Northern (indie band), Cher, and Filter (band), as well as MANGCHI. She is known for exclusively playing Fender bass guitars.

Dylan the Kid
Not much is known about Dylan the Kid, other than that he plays the drums, and is Steve Lee's friend.

Tommy Guerrero
Better known for his skateboarding presence, Tommy Guerrero is also an accomplished musician. Inspired by John Coltrane, Bad Brains, Joy Division, and Gábor Szabó, Guerrero was approached for his musical stylings on Manchi's COLD WAVES EP.

Valentin
Choe's janitor for his warehouse, Valentin, aided in some of the translation for Spanish versions of their songs.

MANGCHI Tong Tang Tour
The first, and only tour of MANGCHI was entirely funded by multi-millionaire and primary founder David Choe, purchasing a tour bus, and stating that the tour cost him over a million dollars, as it was predominantly free. Merchandise, candy, free music, and artwork from David Choe himself was given to every person in attendance of the tour for free at the end of each show. The tour ran from October 29, 2016 to November 16, 2016.

EEGA MOYA
Released October 22, 2014, this first album was recorded in the DVDASA ranch in Big Bear Lake, California.

NEGA MOLA
Released November 5, 2014, it is likely that this album was recorded during the same studio sessions at the Ranch during the DVDASA era. Several tracks from EEGA MOYA are repeated on this album.

SOOBACA
Released right before their first and only tour on September 17, 2016, SOOBACCA's recording environment is unknown. It was recorded after the deletion of DVDASA.

dONt gO sHE GoNe
dONt gO sHE GoNe is MANGCHI's final album to date, released 10 days before the Tong Tang Tour on October 19, 2016, written and recorded in Big Bear Lake, California, Los Angeles, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, and Sedona, Arizona.

RATS IN A PUZZLE EP
Released on July 1, 2016, the RATS IN A PUZZLE EP was recorded in one take. This, along with the COLD WAVES EP, are the only musical stylings of MANGCHI produced and Engineered by DJ Denjahng, as opposed to Money Mark.

COLD WAVES EP
Released on July 19, 2016, the COLD WAVES EP, much like the RATS IN A PUZZLE EP, was produced and engineered by DJ Denjahng.