Sick Puppies are living the dream

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By Julia Arredondo/Special to the Caller-Times
Corpus Christi Caller Times
Posted June 2, 2011 at 3:03 p.m.

CORPUS CHRISTI — The American rock music business has proved to be kind to tour headliners Sick Puppies.

With a little music savvy, continuous hard work and a whole lot of ambition, Sick Puppies gain critical acclaim and a growing fan base with an outsider's perspective on American musical success.

Hailing from Australia, members Shimon Moore and Emma Anzai joined forces with American Mark Goodwin to form Sick Puppies current lineup of alternative rockers. Drawing from influences including Rage Against the Machine and Silverchair, the Sick Puppies sound is a familiar blend of mainstream lyrics and musical structure.

In support of the deluxe reissue of their latest album "Tri-Polar," the Sick Puppies come to town Friday night to celebrate Theo's Billiards anniversary.

"With the album 'Tri-Polar' we had been touring a few years and noticed what worked with live shows and took that information and made the heavy songs heavier and the lighter songs softer. We're really geared toward live shows, and 'Tri-Polar' ended up being an album with a more eclectic sound," said drummer Mark Goodwin. "'Tri-Polar' was originally released in 2009, but the deluxe edition includes a few previously unreleased tracks and an acoustic set."

With the Australian music market less supportive of alternative music acts, singer Shimon Moore and bassist Emma Anzai became a team in 1997 and eventually moved to the United States in pursuit of musical success.

"Reception in Australia is not very good because the music market is made up mainly of pop and rap acts. People think we're big in Australia, but that's just not the case," Goodwin added.

Gaining unintentional success on YouTube in 2006, Sick Puppies have experienced a gradual increase in audience and commercial success.

"Shimon made a YouTube video for the Free Hugs Campaign with a Sick Puppies song behind it and it just took off. The intention was not that at all, but the video ended up winning YouTube video of the year," replied Goodwin.

Eventually Sick Puppies songs would be featured in the video game "Street Fighter IV" and in numerous film trailers including that of "Tekken" and "Smackdown vs. Raw 2010."

"Our audience is growing as this is the biggest headlining tour we've done so far. We'll be touring all of Europe and the U.K soon but in the meantime we'll be honing our skills as musicians and becoming a better band everyday," added Goodwin. "It has to be your life to be at a level where you do it everyday. It was always a full-time thing for us and we are fortunate to make a living at it."