I woke this morning with the Sick Puppies’ song “You’re Going Down” playing in my head. Over and over again, for much of the day, the lyrics kept to a steady loop. It became so maddening that I took to singing them aloud, hoping that might dispel them, but to no avail. It's been a long time coming/And the tables' turned around/Cause one of us is goin'/One of us is goin' down. Now, I figure I could look at this stubborn distraction in one of two ways: as a portent of an icky future confrontation to settle some massive karmic debt of mine or as divine inspiration. Let’s roll with the latter.
I caught Sick Puppies years ago when they opened for Three Days Grace. At the time this Australian trio were out on tour stumping for Dressed Up As Life, their second studio release. The lead single from that album, “All the Same,” had hit #8 on Billboard’s Modern Rock Tracks, while the song's accompanying video was a cause célèbre on YouTube.
Sick Puppies, who began their career as a nu metal band but who have since gravitated to the alt-metal/post-grunge genres, have been making steady inroads into mainstream music since their 1997 inception in Sydney’s Mosman High where singer/lead guitarist Shimon Moore and bassist Emma Anzai bonded over a mutual love of the bands Silverchair, Green Day, and Rage Against the Machine. The two would meet up in the school’s band room to jam with Shimon (who knew how to play both guitar and drums) on drums and Emma on guitar. When they decided to get serious about forming a band, Shimon switched to guitar, Emma to bass, and they recruited drummer Chris Mileski to round out the lineup. Calling themselves Sick Puppies, the group began writing their own material and playing small gigs in and around Sydney, Australia. With the help of Shimon’s father, himself a musician and producer, Sick Puppies released their debut EP, Dog’s Breakfast, in 1999.
Two years later the band released their first studio album, Welcome to the Real World. The record was a hit in Australia and spawned the single “Nothing Really Matters,” which won radio station Triple J’s Unearthed competition. This diamond-in-the-rough contest is held annually to find Australia’s undiscovered talent. The win led to a management deal for Sick Puppies, and tours across the country followed.
With Sick Puppies gathering momentum, Shimon and Emma set their sights on Los Angeles, California, as a way of taking their band to the next level. Before they could do so, however, they took a step back and hatched a plan that included taking on day jobs. Emma turned to telemarketing while Shimon worked at an outdoor shopping mall where he held a sandwich board. It was there that he crossed paths with performance artist Juan Mann, who would play a pivotal role in the trajectory of Sick Puppies.
Fellow Aussie Juan Mann had initiated a “Free Hugs” campaign in 2004 as a way to ease his depression and loneliness. Mann carried the now iconic “FREE HUGS” sign around Sydney’s Pitt Street Mall, offering passersby a hug. He befriended Shimon Moore at the start of the campaign who filmed the positive and negative reactions of strangers over a two-month period and eventually compiled the clips and added the Sick Puppies song "All the Same" to the film. In mid-2006, Shimon sent the video to Mann as a means of consolation when he learned that Mann had just lost his grandmother. Juan Mann was touched by the gesture and posted the film on YouTube, where it has since become one of the most watched videos on the site with over 55 million views.
Sick Puppies moved to the States in March 2005 minus their drummer, who was unable to leave Australia to follow the band. Chris Mileski was replaced by current drummer, Orange County native Mark Goodwin, who hooked up with Shimon and Emma via Craigslist. The newly reformed group released a self-titled EP in 2006 and were signed shortly thereafter to Virgin Records. Sick Puppies’ first major label debut album, Dressed Up As Life, was released in April 2007 and included the breakout single, “All The Same.”
In December 2008 Sick Puppies headed back into the studio to begin work on their next record. Much of the strain and aggression of their single-mindedness and the many years spent on the road was let through their songwriting and found its way onto Tri-Polar. The album was released in July 2009 and debuted at #31 on the Billboard 200 chart. It includes the lead single, “You’re Going Down,” which charted at #2 and served as the theme song for the pay-per-view event, WWE Extreme Rules 2009. The song also appears on the WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 video game soundtrack.
Sick Puppies also wrote a song for Capcom’s video game Street Fighter IV called “Street Fighter (War),” which has been used in advertisements and promotion for the game. The song reached the top 40 on the iTunes top rock songs and was used in the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs introduction video. The band recently released “Odd One” as the second single from Tri-Polar.
Sick Puppies hit the road in April with Shinedown and Breaking Benjamin. The tour plays the States and Canada through June. Be sure to check out the band’s website at www.sickpuppies.net for more information.
