By Chi Tung
Former vocalist and saxophonist of the punk rock band, Skankin' Pickle, and founder of the Asian Man record label, Mike Park brings a little ska somewhere it's never been before.
Mike Park is the former vocalist/saxophonist of the punk rock band, Skankin' Pickle and founder of the Asian Man record label. Skankin' Pickle was a pioneer in bringing ska-punk music to America and has sold over 250,000 albums from 1989 to 1996. Park started the Asian Man label in 1996 and has kept it as a family business that operates out of his garage. Asian Man is a small label that has helped spread the music of other punk bands, such as Less than Jake. The goals of Asian Man records are to produce quality, affordable music, and to be politically active in the ideas of peace and unity. Park has recently released his solo debut album, For the Love of Music, an acoustic punk album whose proceeds help support his Plea for Peace Foundation.
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Interview with Mike Park
November 11, 2003
Interviewed by Chi Tung
Transcription by Tram Nguyen & Chet Wang
Chi: Tell us about Skankin' Pickle and why you decided to split from it?
Mike: That was such a long time ago. That was just basically the band I started after high school, which was 1988. We were a band for about 7 years. It was just one of those things like a relationship. It was something that was really amazing, but it was time to depart, and that's basically what happened.
Chi: Did you think that you could achieve more success by starting a band in your own garage?
Chi: Just compared to Skankin' Pickle.
Mike: Well, I haven't really done a real band since Skankin' Pickle. Most of the time since '96, I've been working on the record label and doing various musical projects, but I haven't really been in a full time band.
Chi: Could you talk a little bit about Asian Man Records and what you hope to achieve with this label?
Mike: Yeah! Asian Man Records basically has been my life for the last 7 years. What I basically started the company for was an outlet to put out my own music and also to help out friends and young bands that I felt deserved to be heard. So Asian Man Records is something that basically is kind of hard to describe. I want the label to have a political identity where we use music to promote ideas of peace and unity. Also, the label is there for a strong Asian identity within the punk underground movement. As you probably know, there isn't a lot of Asian representation in the punk rock music. So it's something that I want other Asian kids to be able to go, "Hey, someone else is doing it, someone else of color is doing this also."
Chi: What are some of the artists that you've signed with the label?
Mike: Gosh! We have about 50 bands that we've worked with over the last 7 years. Some of the bigger names are the Alkaline Trio (which we put out their first 3 records), The Lawrence Arms, Kevin Seconds (the singer for Seven Seconds -- we just did a solo record), Angelo Moore from Fishbone a lot of diverse artists. There's too many to list.
Chi: Is there a primary achievement in things that you think you've accomplished with this label?
Mike: Sure! Well, being able to make a living was a hope and I was able to do that. And also that was a big factor battling with the Asian parents nagging me to go back to school and get my masters, but just being able to make a living. That was a big first step and then now it's just trying to do things under my own terms. I enjoy what I'm doing.
Chi: Like you said earlier, it is very rare to find Asians in the punk-ska category music. Why do you think that is?
Mike: I don't know. I think it's a couple of things. Most Asian kids are really encouraged to play music as a young child, but if it becomes a passion where they want to take it to the next level, they're really not pushed by their parents. It's only pushed as a hobby. When you don't have your parents support to take it professionally, it's a big factor why you don't want to play music. And I think the media has a lot to do with it. If you look at mainstream music, there just haven't been any Asian-fronted bands that have hit top 40 successes. So when you're a young Asian kid and you're watching MTV or whatever your medium is that you're watching or listening to music, there is no Asian artist out there to look up to.
Chi: You obviously put a great deal of effort to make your music accessible by maintaining comparably low CD prices, enforcing an all-age show rule, charging a very small cover charge, and going to different colleges to spread the word. You want people to listen to your music for a reason. What would you say this reason is?
Mike: Probably that they like the music would be the main reason, and other factors perhaps, would be just they support the ideas beyond just the music. Maybe they just really support what I'm trying to do as an underground artist or an underground movement of just being independent and doing it myself, and not taking the MTV way or the major label way.
Chi: What about music do you think is so important?
Mike: Gosh! When I grew up or even now when you hear that song that really hits home, it can influence you. It can influence your mood; it can influence everything. Even just the way your day goes. If your day is going poorly, you hear a great song, it can lift you up. So I've always thought music is one of the most important factors of influencing someone's life. It's just a powerful tool.
Chi: Your music also has a reputation of being politically charged. What kinds of messages do you want people listening to your music to be receiving?
Mike: Just to have your own mind and that you don't need to be influenced by others or what the media says that you need to listen to. I just want people to be smart. I like to create a following of people who just really respect each other and it becomes just a sense of unity; just like-minded people who want to make change.
Chi: Can you tell me a little about the "Plea for the Peace foundation" and maybe just your political or social activism in general?
Mike: Sure. The "Plea for Peace Foundation" was something we created in 1999, and I wanted to use music as a medium to promote a sense of peace in not only in the United States, but the entire world. So what we've been doing is setting up benefit charity tours. We've done it in the United States and Japan, raising money for various non-profits. In the last few years, we've been working with suicide prevention and focusing on kids, just trying to let them know about the statistics, and that they're not alone in thinking about suicide. The non-profits in Japan are probably different. There's no federal funding for non-profits so people that do charity work there, it's all on their own wallet. So we were helping a woman that was helping feed the Kobe earthquake survivors who were homeless, and so what we've been doing is just doing these tours and just trying to raise money for various non-profits.
Chi: How has your music facilitated your political agenda?
Mike: I don't know. I think it's just given me the identity when I'm not playing music; I'm still active doing things through music so my name is still out there. So in this time that I haven't been playing music, I've still been able to be involved in music through the political spectrum. And then, now that I'm playing music again, perhaps I'm not forgotten so much.
Chi: Initially your parents objected to your musical career, urging you to finish school and live a "normal" life. How do they feel about your profession now?
Mike: Oh now they really like it. Since my dad has passed away, but before he had passed away, he had actually started working with Asian Man doing some of the accounting, and we run everything out of my parent's garage so they're involved in every aspect of it. I think if I tried to leave their garage, my mom would be heart-broken so they really support it now.
Chi: How affirming or gratifying is it that you have your parent's support?
Mike: It means a lot. Having them nag me from like ?9-96, it was horrible, but just knowing that they support what I do, that's great. But if I wasn't doing well and they didn't support it, then it would be horrible. So the only reason they're really supporting me is because I'm doing pretty well. So it's kind of a hit-or-miss type of deal there.
Chi:You have been quoted as saying: "The bigger you get, the more headaches." You have turned down lucrative licensing and distribution deals with Japan and Fox Sports. Can you explain why you have voluntarily chosen to maintain this low-key profile?
Published: Friday, January 9, 2004
