Soundbox Reviews July 2013 | Page 9

Sick Puppies recently released a new album “Connect” on July 16, 2013. It’s their new release since the commercially successful “Tri-polar” in 2009. The band is a three-piece which consists of lead singer and guitarist Shimon Moore, Emma Anzai on bass, and Mark Goodwin on percussion.

I’ll just say personally I’m a big Sick puppies fan. They are an amazing live band that I was able to see last Christmas and I was amazed that they sounded amazing for three people. They’ve never disappointed. So I had the same expectations coming into this album. Well as an opening statement, Sick Puppies released a Tri-polar opposite, which was an acoustic album. It was very good and took a different take on them that worked very well. I believe they tried to do that since 9 of the 12 songs are acoustically driven. The standout track is “There’s No Going Back.” This is their best choice as a single because it’s probably the best song on the album. It flows very well together it’s catchy and the lyrics are good, though the chorus repeats itself. Many of the songs on the album repeat in this manner which tired the album quickly for me.

Also, many songs on this album sound very similar in all the qualities. Connect was another good track, with a folk feel to it. On a final note, when I had my first listen of the album today, the drums and bass were almost nonexistent to the guitar and singing. I don’t think they meant to do this, but it happened. It feels as if they just didn’t put in the effort that was needed and they decided, “Hey, we’re bored. Let’s make an album.” I hope Sick Puppies have a few tricks up their sleeve because this album was a disappointment.