Asian Man Records is a Bay Area independent record label that has served as a recurring home for Sacramento-area punk and pop-punk artists, including Kevin Seconds and the sister duo Dog Party.[1][2] Founded and run by Mike Park, the label operates with a hyper-DIY ethos—Submerge described it as being run out of a garage—and has a longtime track record of releasing punk records.[1] Over more than 30 years the label has released nearly 400 projects.[3]
At a glance
- Bay Area indie label (operating out of Monte Sereno, California, near San Jose) founded and run by Mike Park.[1][4]
- "Hyper-DIY approach (the label is run out of a garage)" with a longtime history of punk releases.[1]
- First proper release was Link 80's 17 Reasons.[5]
- Released solo records by Sacramento's Kevin Seconds (of 7 Seconds), including Good Luck Buttons (2010) and Don't Let Me Lose Ya (2012).[2][6]
- Signed Sacramento sister duo Dog Party in 2013; released Lost Control and Vol. 4.[1][7]
Origin and identity
Asian Man Records is identified by Submerge as a "Bay Area indie label" founded by Mike Park.[1] The label is characterized by a do-it-yourself approach, with Submerge noting it is run out of a garage and has a "longtime track record of releasing great punk rock records."[1] More precisely, the label is based in Monte Sereno, California (near San Jose) and started out of Park's parents' garage.[4] A Submerge writer recounted that label founder Mike Park's influence—after being brought into a high school class to speak—was personally formative, underscoring Park's standing in the punk community.[1]
Mike Park was born November 11, 1969, in Seoul, South Korea, and grew up in Silicon Valley, Northern California.[8] The label's first proper release was Link 80's album 17 Reasons.[5] According to Metro Silicon Valley, Asian Man Records has accumulated nearly 400 projects over its three-decade-plus run.[3] A book documenting the label's full history, Elvis Is Dead, I'm Still Alive: The Story of Asian Man Records by Mike Hugenor, was released May 19, 2026, on CLASH Books, compiled from hundreds of hours of interviews with artists, booking agents, former staff, and volunteers.[9]
Relationship to the Sacramento scene
Although the label itself is based in the Bay Area, its catalog has repeatedly intersected with Sacramento artists.
Kevin Seconds
Sacramento-based singer/songwriter Kevin Seconds—frontman of the hardcore punk band 7 Seconds—released solo material through Asian Man Records.[2] His album Good Luck Buttons came out May 11, 2010 via the label, following 2008's Rise Up, Insomniacs![2] In 2012, the label released what Seconds called his fifth "official" solo album, Don't Let Me Lose Ya, a 10-track record issued October 9, 2012.[6] That record was recorded at David Houston's studio and featured contributions from Kepi Ghoulie (drums), Alison Sharkey (cello), Allyson Seconds (vocals), and Houston himself.[6]
Dog Party
In 2013, Sacramento pop-punk sister duo Dog Party—Lucy and Gwendolyn Giles, then 14 and 17—signed with Asian Man Records and released a full-length called Lost Control that summer.[1] Submerge framed the label as "a perfect fit" for the band given its DIY approach and punk pedigree.[1] Dog Party's 2015 album Vol. 4 (due June 16, 2015) was released on LP and CD through Asian Man, with a cassette version via Burger Records.[7] By 2016, Submerge cited Asian Man Records and Burger Records as the "notable labels" on which Dog Party had released albums.[10]
Connecting figures
The label's Sacramento-adjacent roster overlaps through shared collaborators. Kepi Ghoulie appears both as a player on Kevin Seconds' Don't Let Me Lose Ya and as a touring/recording associate of Dog Party, who traveled to Italy and Berlin alongside him.[6][7]