Sick Puppies is an Australian

alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With r ...

band formed in

Sydney, New South Wales Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountains ...

in 1997. After releasing their debut album '' Welcome to the Real World'' in 2001, the band rose to prominence in 2006 when their song "

All the Same "All the Same" is a song by Australian band Sick Puppies, released as the first Single (music), single from their 2007 album ''Dressed Up as Life'', although it was first released on their self-titled EP a year before the album. It reached No. ...

" was uploaded, along with a video, to YouTube. The video supported the

Free Hugs Campaign The Free Hugs Campaign is a social movement involving individuals who offer hugs to strangers in public places.Ellen ConnollHugs and smiles, but not everyone embraces the trend''Sydney Morning Herald'', 1 December 2004 The hugs are meant to be ran ...

, which was launched in Sydney, and has since received over 78 million views on the website. This success was followed up with their second studio album, ''

Dressed Up as Life ''Dressed Up as Life'' is the second studio album released by the Australian alternative rock band Sick Puppies Sick Puppies is an Australian alternative metal band formed in Sydney, New South Wales in 1997. After releasing their debut albu ...

'' in 2007, which entered the ''Billboard'' 200 at number 181. Their third studio album, '' Tri-Polar'', came out on 14 July 2009. The band's fourth studio album, ''Connect'' was released on 16 July 2013. They released their fifth studio album, '' Fury'' on 20 May 2016 with new vocalist Bryan Scott after Shimon Moore was fired from the band in October 2014.

History

Early career (1997–1999)

The band was formed by singer/lead guitarist

Shimon Moore Shimon "Shim" Moore is a rock music songwriter, producer, performing artist, as well as a TV and film actor. Shimon was born on November 11, 1982, in Sydney, Australia. Acting career He began his acting career at the age of nine when he was cas ...

and bassist Emma Anzai in the music room of

Mosman Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local governm ...

High School in 1997, when they double-booked the room and bickered over who would get to practice. They soon bonded over their love of

Silverchair Silverchair were an Australian Rock music, rock band, which formed in 1992 as Innocent Criminals in Newcastle, New South Wales, with Ben Gillies on drums, Daniel Johns on vocals and guitars, and Chris Joannou on bass guitar. The group got thei ...

. Initially with Shimon on drums and Emma on guitars, the duo would frequently meet up to play

Green Day Green Day is an American rock band formed in the East Bay of California in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, together with bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For most of the band's career, they have been a powe ...

Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerfor ...

, and

songs, and eventually felt compelled to write their own material. When Chris Mileski joined the band to play drums, Emma switched to bass and Shimon to guitar and vocals, and they became Sick Puppies. There are two stories as to how the band name originated. The official version is that Shimon Moore thought of the name himself when the band members were brainstorming, and then came home a few days later to find his father Phil reading the book ''

Sick Puppy ''Sick Puppy'' is a 2000 novel by Carl Hiaasen. Plot summary Robert Clapley, a former drug smuggler-turned-real estate developer, plans to build high-rise condominiums and golf courses on Toad Island, the home to a large population of oak toads. ...

'' by

Carl Hiaasen Carl Hiaasen (; born March 12, 1953) is an American journalist and novelist. He began his career as a newspaper reporter and by the late 1970s had begun writing novels in his spare time, both for adults and for young-adult readers. Two of his no ...

. The alternate version is that a neighbor's

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...

entered the garage during a rehearsal and

vomited Vomiting (also known as emesis and throwing up) is the involuntary, forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the nose. Vomiting can be the result of ailments like food poisoning, gastroenteriti ...

on their equipment. An early fan made the comment, "That's one sick puppy", and the name stuck. Emma Anzai took up a job as a

telemarketer Telemarketing (sometimes known as inside sales, or telesales in the UK and Ireland) is a method of direct marketing in which a salesperson solicits prospective customers to buy products or services, either over the phone or through a subsequent f ...

and Shimon took a job holding a

sandwich board A sandwich board is a type of advertisement tool composed of two boards with a message or graphic on it and being either carried by a person, with one board in front and one behind in a triangle shape, hinged along the top, creating a "sandwich" ...

in the Pitt Street Mall in Sydney. Through their own financing and with help from Shimon's father (a musician and producer), the band released their debut EP ''Dog's Breakfast''.

Initial success (2000–2008)

The band entered the

Triple J Unearthed Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broadc ...

band competition in 2000 with a demo of their song, "Nothing Really Matters", and went on to co-win the Sydney-region along with Blue and Ariels.Spans.Earth., which led to a management deal with Paul Stepanek Management. This deal enabled the band to release their debut studio album, '' Welcome to the Real World'' in 2001, and their second EP,

Fly Flies are insects of the Order (biology), order Diptera, the name being derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwing ...

in 2003. The band decided they needed a fresh start when the record label they had signed a contract with folded and their drummer Chris Mileski left the band. They decided to move to Los Angeles when rock photographer Robert Knight, who would later co-star in a documentary called

Rock Prophecies ''Rock Prophecies'' is a 2009 documentary film concerning rock photographer Robert M. Knight. It was directed by John Chester (''Lost In Woonsocket'', A&E's '' Random 1'') and produced by Tim Kaiser (''Seinfeld'', ''Will and Grace''). Synopsis ...

with the band, said to their manager, "You should move the band over here, I really think they will do well". As they were without a drummer, the band posted an ad on

Craigslist Craigslist (stylized as craigslist) is an American classified advertisements website with sections devoted to jobs, housing, for sale, items wanted, services, community service, Gig worker, gigs, résumés, and discussion forums. Craig Newmark ...

, where they found their current drummer Mark Goodwin. In 2007, Sick Puppies released their second album, ''

Dressed Up As Life ''Dressed Up as Life'' is the second studio album released by the Australian alternative rock band Sick Puppies Sick Puppies is an Australian alternative metal band formed in Sydney, New South Wales in 1997. After releasing their debut albu ...

''. The album came after the huge success of the "

", and featured their breakout single "

". The song reached number eight on the U.S.

Modern Rock Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. Radio format Mod ...

chart and is also featured in the video for the Free Hugs Campaign, which won YouTube video of the year in 2006. They followed up the single with " My World", which peaked at No. 20. The band also released " Pitiful" and " What Are You Looking For" as singles in 2008.

''Tri-Polar'' and related releases (2009–2012)

Sick Puppies went into the recording studio in December 2008 to write, record, and produce their next studio album, which was released on 14 July 2009. They also wrote a song for

Capcom is a Japanese video game developer and video game publisher, publisher. It has created a number of List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil' ...

's video game

Street Fighter IV is a 2008 fighting game published by Capcom, who also co-developed the game with Dimps. It was the first original main entry in the series since '' Street Fighter III'' in 1997, a hiatus of eleven years. The coin-operated arcade game version wa ...

called "War", and it has been used in the advertisements and promotion for the game. It also reached the top 40 on the

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

top rock songs. "War" was used during the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL) ...

2009

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

playoffs introduction video. The song was also included as the first track on '' Tri-Polar''. Their first single off '' Tri-Polar'', " You're Going Down", reached No. 1, and was used as the theme song for the

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

pay per view Extreme Rules in June 2009. It was also used in '' SmackDown vs. Raw 2010'', the ''

My Soul to Take ''My Soul to Take'' is a 2010 American slasher film written and directed by Wes Craven. It is his first film since 1994's ''Wes Craven's New Nightmare'' that he wrote, produced, and directed. The film stars Max Thieriot as Adam "Bug" Hellerman, ...

'' (2010) movie trailer, and in the trailer and opening credits of ''

Tekken is a Japanese Media mix, media franchise centered on a series of fighting game, fighting video and arcade games developed and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment (formerly Namco). The franchise also includes film and print adaptations. The ...

''. The second single from the album, " Odd One", hit radio on 10 November. Sick Puppies released a new song called "That Time of Year" on '' NCIS: The Official TV Soundtrack – Vol. 2'' and through their MySpace page for the holidays. The third single from the album, " Maybe", hit radio stations on 22 June. " Maybe" peaked at No. 1 on

Billboard Heatseekers Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...

, No. 15 on Rock, and No. 6 on Alternative. It is the first Sick Puppies song to be on the Hot 100 chart, making it the band's most successful song. The album's fourth single, "

Riptide A rip tide, or riptide, is a strong offshore current that is caused by the tide pulling water through an inlet along a barrier beach, at a lagoon or inland marina where tide water flows steadily out to sea during ebb tide. It is a strong tidal fl ...

", was released in February 2011, and peaked at number 6 on the Billboards Rock Chart. '' Tri-Polar'' was released in the UK on 4 April 2011. On 14 August 2009, Sick Puppies made their film debut in ''

'', a documentary about the career of acclaimed music photographer Robert Knight. This award-winning film features his life as he started out filming music greats such as

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

and

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

, and his current mission to find today's up-and-coming bands and help them become tomorrow's top rock acts. This includes him convincing Sick Puppies to leave their homes to pursue success in the American music industry in Los Angeles. According to bassist Emma Anzai, "( Robert Knight) was like, 'Hey I want to put you in my film', so we were like, 'All right, cool.' So now it's two years later and he documented when we did the first album, the first show, all that kind of stuff. It was really cool. He wanted a new band to . . . develop." During the process, the band was filmed for a few days at a time, and said that they would forget the cameras were there and act accordingly, so this film captures them and their true interactions out of the spotlight. It was partly due to their involvement in this project and Mr. Knight's endorsement that they were able to acquire their first American record deal with RMR/Virgin/EMI. This record deal then led to the first U.S album, ''

''. ''Rock Prophecies'' was nationally aired on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

and became available on DVD on 14 September 2010. On 7 April 2010, Sick Puppies released an acoustic EP titled '' Live & Unplugged'', featuring three tracks from their '' Tri-Polar'' album and one B-Side from that album. The versions of "Odd One", "So What I Lied", and "The Pretender" were recorded in a studio, while "You're Going Down" was recorded live in a Chicago radio station during an interview. To promote the EP, Sick Puppies offered a merchandise package that included ''Tri-Polar'' and ''Live & Unplugged'' with a limited edition lithograph; this package was sold at their concerts. On 1 March 2011, Sick Puppies released their all-acoustic seven-track EP ''

Polar Opposite A polar opposite is the diametrically opposite point of a circle or sphere. It is mathematically known as an antipodal point, or antipode when referring to the Earth. It is also an idiom often used to describe people and ideas that are opposites. ...

'', which includes acoustic versions of "Riptide", "Don't Walk Away", and more. It was recorded in studio, along with string ensemble accompaniment. Anzai also contributes more major lead vocals on the record.

Later albums and Shimon Moore's departure (2013–present)

Sick Puppies released the follow-up album to '' Tri-Polar'' on 16 July 2013. The band originally stated on UStream that the working title was ''Under the Black Sky'' and that there would be a song by the same title. They later confirmed that the album name had changed, and officially announced the title of the album to be ''

Connect Connect may refer to: Music Albums *Connect (album), ''Connect'' (album), an album by Australian rock band Sick Puppies *''Connect'', album by Mark Farina *''Tha Connect'', a 2009 album by Willy Northpole *''Connect'', a 2009 album by Dave Schu ...

'', and its lead single, " There's No Going Back" was released on 20 May 2013. The second single off the album, "

Gunfight A shootout, also called a firefight or gunfight, is a fight between armed combatants using firearms. The term can be used to describe any such fight, though it is typically used to describe those that do not involve military forces or only invo ...

", was released on 13 October 2013. Connect was released in Europe on 31 March 2014. The album's third single, "

Die to Save You Die, as a verb, refers to death, the cessation of life. Die may also refer to: Games * Die, singular of dice, small throwable objects used for producing random numbers Manufacturing * Die (integrated circuit), a rectangular piece of a semicondu ...

", was released on 29 April 2014. The album's fourth single, "

", was released on 19 July 2014. In October 2014, American musician

Blue Stahli Blue Stahli is an American electronic rock project by Bret Autrey. Blue Stahli has appeared in a number of movie trailers, shows and games. History Musical beginnings and VOXiS (1997–2006) Autrey started music at a young age, learning through ...

announced that Anzai had worked on the track "Not Over 'Til We Say So" for his upcoming album ''

The Devil Satan,, ; grc, ὁ σατανᾶς or , ; ar, شيطانالخَنَّاس , also known as the Devil, and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an entity in the Abrahamic religions that seduces humans into sin or falsehood. ...

''. On 20 October 2014, it was announced that frontman Shimon Moore had left the band and that the remaining two members would continue on without him. This left bassist Emma Anzai as the only original member remaining in the band. It was later alleged that Moore was fired after he attempted to dissolve the band through a lawyer. Moore stated he was kicked out while out of town and he had no knowledge of it beforehand. He said he was sad and that he wished the band well. On 15 December 2015, the band teased their upcoming music. They also signed on to play tours including Rock on the Range. On 8 February 2016, they revealed their new vocalist, Bryan Scott, who previously played with Glass Intrepid and Dev Electric, and briefly toured as a vocalist for Atlantic Records rock act Emphatic in 2011, while previewing a new single called ''Stick to Your Guns''. On 31 March 2016, Sick Puppies released their single "Stick to Your Guns". The album '' Fury'' was released in May 2016. In May 2022, Anzai joined

Evanescence Evanescence is an American rock band founded in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1995 by singer and musician Amy Lee and guitarist Ben Moody. After recording independent EPs as a duo in the late 90's, and a demo CD, Evanescence released their debut s ...

to fill that band's vacant bassist position, but she remains with Sick Puppies.

Band members

Sick Puppies at Camp Humphreys - 2019 (5360827) (cropped)

Current members * Emma Anzai – bass, backing vocals (1997–present) * Mark Goodwin – drums, backing vocals (2003–present) * Bryan Scott – lead vocals, guitars (2016–present) Former members * Chris Mileski – drums, backing vocals (1997–2003) *

– lead vocals, guitars (1997–2014) Timeline

Discography

* '' Welcome to the Real World'' (2001) * ''

'' (2007) * '' Tri-Polar'' (2009) * ''

'' (2013) * '' Fury'' (2016)

Awards and nominations

, - , rowspan="2", 2001 , , Nothing Really Matters , ,

Competition , , , - , , Sick Puppies , , Australian Live Music Awards' "Best Live Act" , , , - , , 2003 , , Sick Puppies , , The National Musicoz Awards' "Best Rock Artist" , , , - , , 2006 , , Free Hugs (All the Same) , , YouTube Video of the Year' "Inspirational" , , , - , , 2007 , , Sick Puppies , ,

Yahoo! Music Yahoo! Music was a brand under which Yahoo! provided a variety of music services, including Internet radio, music videos, news, artist information, and original programming. Previously, users with Yahoo! accounts could gain access to hundreds of ...

's "Who's Next" award , , , - , , 2011 , , Sick Puppies , , Bandit Rock Awards' "International Breakthrough Award" , , , - , , 2012 , , Maybe , , BMI Pop Award , ,

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1997 establishments in Australia Australian hard rock musical groups Australian post-grunge groups Australian nu metal musical groups Musical groups established in 1997 Musical groups from Sydney Australian musical trios Pew Fellows in the Arts Virgin Records artists Australian alternative rock groups