How did you first become a SP fan?

[Rock_kid]

Hey guys.
I just wanna say that Sick Puppies is, and has been for years, by far my favorite band. But it all happened by chance that I stumbled across some great music with a wonderful sound that makes me feel more at home than any band I've heard before. I'd like to hear other people's stories about how you were first introduced to SP's music and became a fan, as well as take the chance to share mine.

A few years back, I registered for a BMG music club, offering a one-time welcoming membership deal of 12 cd's for the price of one. It was an awesome deal and I wish they hadn't discontinued it (though I understand why they did). I was browsing for some new music and came across Dressed Up As Life. I was encouraged to listen to a little of it when I saw the song "Asshole Father". I though, "Hey, I have one of those.". I was in my teens and pretty bitter with my parents, as a lot of teens are. I liked what I heard but decided not to buy the album; there were too many other cd's I already wanted and I was only allowed 12. (Heh, ONLY 12, she says. I miss that club.) Several months later, shopping in Walmart, I found the cd again. I had some money with me but under most circumstances I would've decided against buying it - never having heard a full song by the artist, and already having decided against getting the cd for free, paying full price just wouldn't have been something I'd do. But I was just so compelled by the title of that song, Asshole Father. I guess it was some sort of unspoken desire to have someone sing through my speakers that I'm understood. I bought it. I played it as soon as I got home and was slightly disappointed that the song wasn't about what I expected. It wasn't the singer complaining about his father. In fact, the whole album was different than what I expected, and different from most music I listened to before. It seemed to actually mean something. I liked the music right away, and slowly I began to understand what the songs meant. It didn't take too long before I had the entire cd memorized. Before I knew it I heard of another album coming out - Tri-Polar, of course - and I snatched it up the day it came out in stores. That one, I loved instantly. I'd say it took maybe a day and a half before I had it all memorized. This album delivered all I was hoping for with Dressed Up as Life, and more. Between "I Hate You", "You're Going Down" and "In It For Life", I had all I needed to feel understood by the band. These people really get me. Directing all the emotion I felt with those three songs towards my parents, I had all the motivation I needed to move out which is one of the best decisions I've made in my life. I've become way happier, and my parents and I get along better than ever (after working through a little bit of expected tension from my sudden move). I owe a lot of the courage to make that change to Sick Puppies. I doubt I could've done it if not for their words I used to get the whole thing in motion.
A few months later I made it to a concert nearby. I'd say it would have to be in my top three 'best days of my life'. My first SP concert, and really my first rock concert. It was amazing. I think my head almost exploded from how awesome the whole thing was. They did a great job, and I've taken every chance I can to see them again since, and try to show my support for how awesome the band is to their fans, in so many ways.

So what are your stories?

[Snowmonkies]

Haha I was wondering why there wasn't a topic like this already.

It was on Valentine's Day of this year (love at first sight? XD) me and my mom were driving in the car to get something to eat, and since I never hang out with her very much, we usually don't talk very much right away, so we turned on the radio. Maybe came on and I remember thinking "Hm when this song ends I'll listen for the band and look it up on itunes later, this song ain't too bad." So I did and I got Maybe on my ipod and listened to it a few times over while I fingerweaved some bracelets for fun. That was the end of it for a bit, but I realized I could find good music on the radio. I started listening to the Alternative stations on itunes and keeping a running list of the songs I liked. Eventually I stumbled across Rip Tide and I loved it to death (still do, it's number one on the top 25 most played songs playlist). What happened after that is a bit foggy, but I checked out Tri-Polar and ended up getting Survive, Should've Known Better, and Don't Walk Away. Polar Opposite had just come out at the time, so I got the songs I knew off of that. I started sharing my findings with my friend. One night, I was having a bad night and I was having an emotional breakdown, and somehow I ended up looking into Dressed Up As Life, and listening to the previews they had some impact on me in my vulnerable moment, I bought the songs I liked. I progressively bought more of the songs. Originally, I didn't want to get Odd One because I thought the song was too sad. Eventually I bought it thinking "For God sake's the title is calling me and this could be a good feel-better song later." At that point I had everything except Asshole Father, and Deliverance. By then I dubbed SP to be my favorite band. When the live cd came out, I bought that, no questions asked. Then I came upon SPWC. When I joined, I listened to the .mp3 of Deliverance live, and I thought "I wonder what the regular version sounds like." So I revisited those last two songs and got those. I started playing the songs for my two friends, and now I've got them turning into fans (the one's a bit of a Shimlin, I'm so proud ) Another day, me and my mom were talking about the Free Hugs video and I asked her if she had heard the song on it. Since there are lots of Free Hugs videos now, I played All the Same for her to see if she recognized it. I ended up playing a few more songs for her, all of them from Polar Opposite. She really liked the messages in the songs, in fact she cried when I played Maybe for her <.< Then the two of us had a hysterical crying moment with Sick Puppies playing in the background. Now I've got her becoming a fan too. I'm kicking myself now for not seizing the chance to go to a concert that happened back in May

That's my ranting story. Good gravy I can't wait for the next album.

[xlpurplepixielx]

Well my becoming a fan of Sick Puppies is nowhere near as awesome, but still....I was listening to Breaking Benjamin Radio on Pandora back in July, and I Hate You came on (I had already heard Maybe a few weeks earlier at this point, but didn't pay it much attention) and I thought to myself "You know what, I feel like this so much towards so many people in my life..." so I decided to write down the band name and investigate further. Youtube searching them led me to watch all of the videos, and then just fell in love with the band. I Hate You made me give them a second listen, and Riptide is what made me ultimately fall in love with the band. I heard Riptide and I thought "Yeah...this is so true, and why don't people GET THAT" because I'm always having people try to tell me how to live my life, and it's like GAh, my life, butt out, y'know? So I had an insta-connect with Riptide, and the rest, as they say, is history. I can't think of a single song I don't love by SP. Seriously, cannot. Not possible. I also cannot think of any band that can be so varied and still sound so great, most bands don't even TRY to have a bit of variety. Almost all of the songs I could identify with at one point or another in my life as well. Within the first few songs I heard, SP became my favorite band.

Also no other band can relax me as easily as they can, seriously, I'm angry or stressed, I play SP, and it's insta-happy.

Err yeah, there's my how I became a fan story. I doubt any band can ever take their place, because like I said, they are very varied, and that does help a lot. Not to mention they are extremely awesome.

[Gam3fr3ak96]

I like quite a few only discovred the band recentley.

As everyone knows, when YGD was released as the first single off Tri-Polar it ended up being a pretty big hit. A now non-existant radio station in my area played the songs several times that I heard, and I did enjoy the song. But it wasn't anything that special at the time. Moving forward a few months, around Novemeber of that year, I started looking into going to a concert that included a couple of my favorite bands. It was the last leg of Nickelback's (Bleh! ) Dark Horse tour that had Shinedown and Breaking Benjamin supporting as well as the Sick Puppies. SHinedown and Breaking Benjamin we're two of my favorite bands at the time and I liked/like some Nickelback so it seemed like a good idea. In preperation for the concert, I went out and bought Tri-Polar so I would have some knowledge of the SP songs before I went. However, Tri-Polar didn't really catch on with me a whole lot at the time since I was much more excited about Shinedown and Breaking Benjamin. A couple months after that concert though, (Which I actually missed the SP portion of because I got to the venue late ) I saw Dressed Up As Life in a Borders store and figured I'd buy it and give it a shot. At that point, I fell in love with the band and alll of their songs. Songs like My World and Cancer really pulled me in and made me love the band.

[Becky]

My story is pretty simple. I saw them open for Evanescence three times in 2007 and was hooked after seeing them live.

[angelbear425]

Mine is also a simple story. I heard All the Same on the radio in 2006 and then My World in 2008 and fell in love with both songs. Went to my first shows in 2008, fell in love with them, and that's the end.

[fiveohn]

I'm a late bloomer. I heard them this year for the first time on the radio. I'm old (50) and usually jump back and forth from station to staion but listen to CD's mostly. Anyway caught Riptide on the radio and liked what I heard. It takes alot for me to like a tune enough to research the band. So I hit Youtube to see and hear what SP were all about. I will tell you that I only have Dressed up and Tri-Polar and I am very impressed. Not only are the lyrics awesome but the musical talent of the band is mind blowing. It sounds like there are five people in the band. I equate there talent inline with Rush except SP hit harder. Timing is everything when making a song flow with the instuments and most bands struggle making that happen for me. I can't wait for the next CD. Keep up the good work guys you definitley have something special in the way you put your music to my ears. Thank You Emma you ROCK!

[Heather]

I heard My World on Music Choice in 2008. Thought the song was really cool & was really impressed to learn they have a female bass player! Bought DUAL & loved it, then fell totally in love with the band when I saw them open for Hinder in August 08. I got to meet them then too & was totally amazed at their wonderful interaction with fans.

[lucyzaire09]

The story of how I became a fan (of sick puppies) is kind of long (meaning complicated).

I was going to a Nickleback show to see my home town friend, Chad Kroeger. He came up to me and said "You should listen to Sick Puppies." The thing is, this was in early 2009 (before the tour...). So I did. And I fell in love with Maybe (Track 9 on Tri-Polar). It spoke to me more than "This is How You Remind Me", which is a song that has deeper lyrics than I have ever known.

When I finally made it to a Sick Puppies show, Shim was the nicest, most even tempered person I have ever met in my life! Even sweeter than the lead singer of Shinedown. I can tell that he is fully committed to making the best music possible (as evident by the magic of Maybe). After they toured together Chad told me how great Sick Puppies were and how hard working their crew was. I will forever respect the integrity (The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness) in people like Chad, Brent, and Shim.

[chandra]

i became a fan when i heard odd one for the first time in fall 2009,when i was 12. it was early in the morning,everybody was out of the house and i was doing dishes with the radio on. as soon as i heard the beginning bass notes, i sat down on the floor by the radio and turned it all the way up. that song really spoke to me, but of course, the radio station didnt say who it was, so for the next few days i listened to the radio constantly until i heard it again. a couple months later i heard an ad for the tour gam3fr3ak96 talked about, which hapened to be on my bday. when i got to go, the pups where by far the best part of of the night. after that, i started listening to tri-polar all the time and now i'm a huge fan.

[Stacey]

Heard All The Same a few times liked it.....had no idea who sang it. Went to see Kill Hannah and Flyleaf and guess who opened for them Hooked.

[risenreturn]

wow... my story seems so unimportant compared to you guys.

Anyway, They were the theme song for a WWE PPV, Thought they were awesome, and have been a fan of them ever since. Quite the deep story, no?

[pillarocka]

Well let's see, it was this past summer and i was getting into a bunch of new bands... i was going to warped tour and a bunch of different shows, my cousin said hey man you gotta listen to this cd (tri polar) it's the best. Now normally the stuff he gives me to try new i personally don't like. Put in the cd and i was like damn! listened to the first cd, same reaction, i love every single song. unfortunately i had to wait to see them until september at the york fair in PA because they were all over the west coast for a good while. They opened for 3 doors down.

The thing i love about them playing live was they opened with war.....and the crowd was just standing there arms crossed. halfway through their setlist, SP were able to get the crowd on their side and everybody was ready to put a f*ck hole in the ground with Nothing Really Matters. After the show the line was wicked long to do the meet and greet. I got a special pass and got some autographs from them and they are the nicest people in the world!....Especially Shim!

[angelbear425]

[CoasterJake]

Mine's pretty simple. Just back in December of 2010 my best friend said "I want to go to a Sick Puppies concert and im making you go with me." I had never even HEARD of the band or any of their songs and went into the concert with nothing. I just fell in love that night as they played more and more songs and when I got home and listened to everything it just kept on going from there. Now I am in forever debt to her for making me go to a show

[i_wont_justify]

we have this local channel on tv called "IMC", better known as "Indys music channel." they have a segment called the rock block and occasionally have musicians come into the studio and give a live performance for the show. this was a few years back, and i actually thought the sick puppies were from indy because IMC isnt very popular. they played all the same accoustically, with mark drumming on the seat he was on. i liked their sound, but didnt really think of investigating into their music. a few months later, a video was promoted on the main page of youtube titled "Free hugs." of course, that was the big break for our beloved pups :] my uncle was living with me at the time, and he used to perform onstage with a band locally; they did mostly covers of other songs. when i asked if he had heard of this little band, he nodded and pulled up some of their songs on his computer. of which, he gave me pitiful, all the same, and deliverance. months later, my world was on the top of the charts on itunes, and i bought it :] i was hooked. the sick puppies were my first concert, and ive seen them 4 times since then, meeting them 5 times in total. they remain to be my favorite band; they and their fans are some of the nicest people out there

[Dana]

Simple story here too, saw them open for shinedown and the rest is HISTORY

[RenzoN]

We have a muzik thing on our PS3 here in Europe called Vidzone (think you don't have it in the US) and they have always some tips for bands. and a friend of my said to me to check out Sick Puppies, they should be awesome... And i fell in love right away!! I bought DUAL and later tri-polar. my friend didn't bought the album, so i gave my album to him. and he said it is not very original, i got mad, and bitch slapt him! We are still friends

[Speedynek]

My story is pretty short.. I was a member of small blog where I and one my friend wrote news about music.. He wrote an article about Tri-Polar with music video for You're Going Down and I instantly became a junkie listens about 400x times per week for a 2 months I guess?

[lucyzaire09]

@Angelbear, Thanks for the link! viewtopic.php?f=52&t=3720&hilit=international). I'm from a small town in Alberta called Hanna (Canada). I live in Tennessee now though (in a small town (village) called Lenox, outside of Memphis).