Sick Puppies – Tri-Polar (Deluxe)

Sick Puppies – Tri-Polar (Deluxe) (2011, Virgin Records)

Disc 1
Tri-Polar
1. “War” … 3:13
2. “I Hate You” … 3:28
3. “Riptide” … 3:11
4. “You’re Going Down” … 3:07
5. “Odd One” … 3:47
6. “So What I Lied” … 3:42
7. “Survive” … 3:12
8. “Should’ve Known Better” … 3:52
9. “Maybe” … 3:29
10. “Don’t Walk Away” … 3:48
11. “Master of the Universe” … 3:33
12. “In It for Life” … 4:05
13. “White Balloons” … 3:39

Disc 2
Polar Opposite
1. “You’re Going Down” [Unplugged] … 4:09
2. “Riptide” [Unplugged] … 3:21
3. “Maybe” [Unplugged] … 3:30
4. “Odd One” [Unplugged] … 3:44
5. “Don’t Walk Away” [Unplugged] … 3:42
6. “All the Same” [Unplugged] … 4:16
7. “White Balloons” [Unplugged] … 3:24
B Sides
8. “Dead Space” … 3:12
9. “The Pretender” … 3:08
10. “Til Something Breaks” … 2:47
Bonus Track
11. “Monsters” … 4:08

Band:
Shimon Moore – Lead Vocals, Guitar
Emma Anzai – Bass, Backing Vocals
Mark Goodwin – Drums, Backing Vocals

Producer: Rock Mafia, Ross Hogarth

Tri-Polar (Deluxe) is a two-disc reissue of the band’s 2009 album Tri-Polar on Disc 1 with Disc 2 holding 2011’s Polar Opposite unplugged EP and a handful of B-sides.

I wasn’t too familiar with Australia’s Sick Puppies before listening to this album. I really one remember them from a blurb in UK’s Classic Rock magazine awhile back. In regards to the current hard rock scene, I know the praise about them has generally been positive and they’ve had a number of U.S. rock radio hits but the only song that rang a bell with me was “You’re Going Down”. “You’re Going Down” is a decent radio-ready tune but didn’t knock my socks off and I was expecting more of the same from this album. Rock radio is full of that generic post grunge guitar crunch and I was thinking that was going to be the case here.

When I finally had the chance to sit down and listen to this album, I was very happy to hear there is a much softer, melodic and introspective side than a song like “You’re Going Down” would have you believe. Not that this isn’t a hard rock album — it is! It’s just that there are so many catchy moments throughout the album with lyrics that I find easy to relate to.

“Odd One”, “Riptide” and “Maybe” were great choices as follow-up singles from the original album but “I Hate You”, “So What I Lied” and “Should’ve Known Better” also had hit potential to my ears. Based on Disc 1 alone, I am now a Sick Puppies fan.

Onto Disc 2, the Polar Opposite portion is acoustic-based with some orchestrations thrown in on a song such as “White Balloons”. These stripped down numbers only further show that Sick Puppies have more to give than angry hard rock tailor-made for radio. It’s a deeper, more thoughtful side that I hope they continue to explore. All of the Polar Opposite tracks come off just as well as their Tri-Polar counterparts (“All the Same” comes from 2006’s Dressed Up as Life) and it’s interesting to hear a different take on them.

As far as the B Sides go, those are fairly enjoyable as well with “The Pretender” really standing out as something that should’ve been on the album itself. The bonus track “Monsters” is a moody rocker that I also enjoy.

While comparing Sick Puppies to bands such as Hinder and Avenged Sevenfold is like comparing apples to oranges to pineapples, this group really shows a lot of promise for a long and fruitful career. Like those bands I am glad they have more to offer when it comes to their albums and they seem like they are not afraid to grow and offer up something different. Tri-Polar (Deluxe) shows a band that rocks hard, writes songs that can stand on their own when stripped down and they can also produce thoughtful tracks such as “Odd One” and “White Balloons”.

What a great young band.

Highlights: “I Hate You”, “Riptide”, “You’re Going Down”, “Odd One”, “So What I Lied”, “Maybe”, “Don’t Walk Away”, “Master of the Universe”, “The Pretender”, “Monsters”

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