Mike Park - For the Love of music

I am always amazed at the courage any songwriter has to perform songs in front of an audience, to share them with people other than themselves. It puts them up for a lot of criticism, and it also is very revealing of character and experiences. I feel like Mike Park has told me all about his life and left many stories open to share. And I truly appreciate it. Yes, I know it has nothing to do with the music, but the liner notes say a lot about wanting to open up through his music. He has a picture of himself every year since he was about six, complete with braces, bad haircuts and acne. His stripped down, acoustic based songs range from singing about heartbreak to what it was like growing up Asian. The best and most clever song, “From Korea,” explains “Screw this I'm leaving / I don't need a racist friend / And I'm not like you / I'm from Korea / My eyes are small, but yours are closed”. The subject matter and the genre could easily fall into the cheesy, open-mic coffee house variety, but Mike Park is full of class and is an expert at putting together a song that is melodic, revealing and well-planned. I almost feel like I want to call him personally and thank him for writing such great music about such personal experiences. Whatever genre you are into, there is no denying that this is great, and you would have to be vapid and cold-hearted not to get any emotion or joy out of this album. [www.mikeparkmusic.com]