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A Walk In The ParkAn Interview With Mike ParkSpecial to XROXX by Will Tinsley and Tom DornerMike Park, founder of Asian Man Records, and vocalist for the Chinkees interviewed by Tom Dorner and Will Tinsley at Plea For Peace-Take Action Tour 2001 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. XROXX: Mike, so far can you tell us some of the highlights of your tour, we know you are wrapping it up right now, maybe some good points and bad points? MIKE: I think the best points of it is just being able to meet a lot of different people, not only from the audience XROXX: Have you signed any new bands to the label recently? MIKE: I think the newest band, well we actually never sign a band, we just don’t do contracts. It is just more handshake, let’s put out a record, but in terms of new bands that are coming on. There is a band called the Plus Ones from the Bay area of California. Just a pop-punk band. That is pretty much it, actually, we have another band called Shortround. He is actually here selling merchandise tonight for the Asian Man table, but they are a very young band, and hopefully an up and coming band. Those are two new bands that are coming out on Asian Man. XROXX: Ok, this years theme is focusing on the hotline for 1-800-SUICIDE which helps young people who have depression and other problems and need a voice to talk to. Do you have any ideas for what next years theme might be? MIKE: I don’t know, we have actually talked about it and to be honest, we really have no idea of what we are going to do. I think we will just take it as the tour comes closer when we start brainstorming about what we want to do, that is when I will really start to think about it, but at this point I really have no idea. XROXX: Do you have any personal experiences that swayed you towards the cause for helping the suicide help line? MIKE: Well I think everybody has bouts of depression, and just having friends that have committed suicide, and then having friends, existing friends now, people that are playing tonight that go through bouts of depression, and I think more so than myself, but still I feel kind of like a father figure to the bands on Asian Man because I am older than most of the members of the bands, and just feeling for them. I just thought that this would be a good situation for them and for kids that are contemplating suicide, or dealt with it, and whether a family member has passed or a friend has passed through suicide. XROXX: Has the label gotten too big for your garage yet? MIKE: Well, it is kind of getting that way in terms of space. Well what I am going to do once I get back, I have a XROXX: Were there any winners in your look like Mike contest? MIKE: No, not yet, that is kind of a no win contest. (Laughter) I think we have that up there for more of a comical effect. We have gotten some entrees, but it is mostly just people sending in photos of asian people that they know. At this point, no, there has not been a winner. But maybe there is somebody out there that has the same features as myself. I think someone could look like me, but there is no way that they could match me in size, so we’ll see what happens. XROXX: I read somewhere on the internet that you collect action figures, is your collection still growing? I think I read that you were looking for trades and when you were in Japan you found a lot of characters you could not find in America. MIKE: Actually I found Smithers. I have just been collecting Simpsons. I used to collect everything randomly, I used to go to toy conventions and, well, mainly just Toys ‘R Us, they have the most selection. I would just get stuff on clearance, it did not matter what it was. It became out of hand, I have so many boxes of toys. I am just focusing on Simpsons right now, it is a hard toy to collect because they toys sell out so quickly. Yea, it was strange to find a figure I was looking for in Japan. It was still marked up, I paid like 25 bucks for it, but it was still cheaper, I probably would of had to buy it on eBay for $40 or $50, so win-win. XROXX: I sent you an e-mail when I saw the line-up for this years tour, I was a bit concerned that there was no ska bands prevalent on the tour, as there was in the past. And you sent me an e-mail back and all it said was 'Just wait until next year and be very surprised.' MIKE: That is what I said? (laughter) XROXX: That is what you said. Do you want to elaborate on that or is it still a big surprise? MIKE: (laughter) Well probably in my mind I was thinking 'hey next year I am gonna get Less Than Jake,' but that is just, I haven't even asked them. Maybe that is what I was thinking when I wrote that e-mail but I have no idea what the surprise is. Um, yea, I have no idea what is gonna happen next year. XROXX: It might be Skankin’ Pickle? Yes, no? MIKE: Oh, definitely no. XROXX: That time has come and gone? MIKE: That time has come and gone. XROXX: Ok, what can you say about the new MU330 album? They were just in Milwaukee about two weeks ago and were very excited that it was coming out. We (Will & Tom) had a chance to talk with them, and they were really thrilled. Have you heard it yet? Do you have any opinions on it? MIKE: Yea, it is really good. We actually are just kinda waiting, we feel that the time is just not right to put it out right now, so I think March or April of next year. But as the music industry goes, you notice a lot of the bands that play ska have either changed their style or moved and and broken up, and start new bands. But this album is all ska. It is really heavy, just dance music, you know? Big horn sounds, organ, Chas from the Blue Meanies plays organ on it, John Paul from the Blue Meanies adds a third horn, a saxophone. it is just a big sounding record, and every song is ska. It is pretty cool. XROXX: How do you pass the time on the road? MIKE: I think with this many people it is not hard to pass time because there is always something to do. When you are traveling with 35 people, usually it is just hanging out, maybe going for a walk and just checking out the town, or reading a book or watching a movie. Luckily we are on the bus so don’t, don’t... Jason Black and some other members from Hot Water Music and their friends enter the tour bus and grab the microphone and make moaning noises that sound like 'Ahhhhhhhh, Helllooooooo, Hellooooo' in low raspy voices. They then laugh and give the microphone back to Mike. MIKE: Maybe take some pictures and get something to eat when we have time. That is pretty much what I have been doing most of this tour. XROXX: What is new with the Chinkees? MIKE: Well, actually we leave in about 37 hours for Japan and we will do Plea For Peace in Japan with the Suicide Machines and Potshot. Our organ player quit, so I guess we are going without an organ player, which is kinda strange cause our sound is so organ heavy. And we will just see how it goes. We apologize for not playing in the United States, but to be honest I have a hard time playing in the US. I get really emotionally unstable, and it is just a personal problem that I deal with, so i don’t know if I will ever tour in the US with the band but, I still enjoy recording the music and occasional tours over in Asia or in Europe. That is pretty much all that is up with the band. Oh sorry, we just finished a new record, and it just came out in Japan last week and it will come out in... Jason Black from Hot Water Music emerges from the back of the bus and steals the microphone again. 'I love Michael Park,' he says, and then runs away. MIKE: Yes, that was Jason Black from Hot Water Music. That new record will hopefully come out in the states next year, maybe April or May. Will Tinsley & Tom Dorner What's Mike Park up to today?
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standpoint, but from just the bands. With all of the different bands that have played on the tour, I’ve met over 50 people. When you have that many people together you always think there is some jerks, but gosh, this year everybody has been so cool that I think that is the greatest part, being able to meet these other artists who are like minded, and just really genuinely nice people. I think the negatives are just being on tour, especially for me was trying to be on tour after the September 11th terrorist attacks. I really didn’t want to be on tour. I wanted to go home. It has kinda lingered on me for these last three weeks, just going back and forth of trying to be upbeat, and getting down and upbeat and down, and I guess that is just part of touring.
couple more tours, Japan and Korea. When I get back we are going to gut the garage. We have so much junk that I have collected, we have just got to reorganize and make it fit in the garage. At this point it is a wreck, you can barely walk through it. But I think with some organization it will be fine. Yeah, I don’t think I can afford to move out of the garage to be honest because rent is so expensive in Northern California, but yea, I have no qualms with being in the garage. It gets a little cold in the wintertime but other than that it is fine.