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Sum 41

Sum 41 is a Juno Award-winning Canadian rock band from Ajax, Ontario.[1] The current members are Deryck Whibley (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Cone McCaslin (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Steve Jocz (drums, percussion, and backing vocals). The band's "classic" line-up is the same, except with Dave Baksh on lead guitar and backing vocals.

In 1999, the band signed an international record deal with Island Records. Since then, the band has released four studio albums. Their most successful album to date is All Killer No Filler, which has gone 3x platinum in Canada and platinum in the United States.[2] The album was fueled by the single "Fat Lip", Sum 41's most successful single to date; reaching #1 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.[3] Another single off the album, In Too Deep, reached #10 on the Modern Rock chart.[4]

They often perform more than 300 times in a single year; making them famous for their long and global tours, most of which last more than a year.[5] So far, all of the Sum 41 albums have gone platinum in Canada.[6]

Sum 41 has been nominated for 5 Juno Awards (the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy), winning once. In 2001, they were nominated for "Best New Group" at the Juno awards, where they lost to Nickelback. They were nominated for "Best Group" in the Juno Awards of 2002, but again lost to Nickelback. In 2003, Sum 41 won a Juno Award for "Group Of The Year".[7] In 2004, they were nominated again, this time with Does This Look Infected? for "Rock Album of the Year", but they lost to Sam Roberts's We Were Born in a Flame. In 2005, they were nominated for "Group of The Year", but lost to Billy Talent. In 2008, they were nominated for another Juno Award, this time it was Underclass Hero for "Rock Album of the Year", however, they lost to Finger Eleven's Them vs. You vs. Me.[8]

History

Beginnings and Half Hour of Power (1996-2000)

Deryck Whibley during a show

They formed on July 31, 1996 or 41 days into the summer, which is the origin of their name. The band was originally a NOFX cover band and named Kaspir, and changed their name to Sum 41 for a Supernova show on September 28, 1996.[9][10]

In 1998 the band recorded a demo tape on cassette which they sent to various record companies in the hope of getting a recording contract. These demo tapes are rare and are the only recordings known with the original bassist Richard "Twitch" Roy.

The band carried a video camera with them to film their crazy antics including robbing a pizza place with water guns and performing a dance to "Makes No Difference" in front of a theater, both of which can be seen on both Introduction to Destruction and on the bonus DVD, called Cross The T's and Gouge Your I's from Does This Look Infected?.[11]

Sum 41 released the EP Half Hour of Power on June 27, 2000. The first single released by the band was "Makes No Difference", which had two different videos. The first video was put together using the video clips sent to the record label and the second showed the band performing at a house party.[12]

All Killer No Filler and Does This Look Infected? (2001-2003)

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"Fat Lip"
Sample of "Fat Lip" from All Killer No Filler. "Fat Lip" was the band's first single to reach #1 on the hot modern rock charts.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

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Sum 41's first full-length album, All Killer No Filler, was released on May 8, 2001. The first single released was "Fat Lip", which became a huge hit during the summer, becoming the #1 rock song in the U.S. as well as many other countries around the world.[13] Two other singles were released, they were: "In Too Deep", which had a comedy video of the band in a diving competition, and "Motivation", a simplistic video of the band playing in a classic garage band theme. The band toured for much of the year, playing 300 shows in 2001, including opening for Blink-182 on tour before returning to the studio to record another album. They took the last week of the tour off; due to September 11th terrorist attacks.[14]

On November 26, 2002, Sum 41 released their second full-length album, Does This Look Infected?. It was accompanied by a DVD with video footage that was not to be sold to those under the legal age. "We don't want to make another record that sounds like the last record," declared Whibley. "I hate when bands repeat albums."[15] The first single released was "Still Waiting". The band followed up the release of "Still Waiting", with "The Hell Song", a unique video of which had the band using dolls with their pictures on them and others, such as Ozzy Osbourne and Pamela Anderson. Their next single,"Over My Head (Better Off Dead)", had a video released exclusively in Canada and on their website, featuring live shots of the band. The video was also on their live DVD, Sake Bombs And Happy Endings (2003), as a bonus feature.

Chuck and the Congo (2004-2006)

One bomb came too close, hit the hotel and the hotel just started shaking. Everyone dove and was lying on the ground. Things were falling off the walls, mirrors were breaking. That's when we all kind of realized that this was really going bad, and we're probably not going to make it out.

— Deryck Whibley

In late May 2004, the band traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo along with War Child Canada, a branch of the British charity organization, to document the civil war occurring in the country.[16] Days after arriving, fighting broke out near the hotel the band was staying at in Bukavu.[17] The band waited for the firing to die down, but it never did. A U.N. peacekeeper, Charles "Chuck" Pelletier, called for armored carriers to take the hotel's occupants out of the hot zone. After nearly six hours, the carriers arrived, and the band and the forty other civilians were taken to safety. The band named their next album Chuck in honor of Pelletier for taking them to safety. The documentary was made into a film called ROCKED: Sum 41 in Congo, and was later aired on MTV. War Child released it on DVD on November 29, 2005, in the United States and Canada.

Sum 41's album, Chuck, was released on October 12, 2004. The first single from the album was "We're All To Blame". The band followed up with "Pieces", a relatively soft song which reached the top of the charts in Canada, and "Some Say", released as a single only in Canada and Japan. The last single off the record was "No Reason", released at the same time as "Some Say", but with no video and only in Europe and the USA, where it reached #16 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts.[18]

Sum 41 released a live CD, Happy Live Surprise, in Japan on December 21, 2005. The CD contains a full concert recorded live from London, Ontario and was produced by Deryck. The same CD was released March 7, 2006, in Canada under the name Go Chuck Yourself. This version was released under Aquarius Records instead of EMI, the band's former label in Canada. The reason for this was the band had an issue with their producer and their management company, Greig Nori and Bunk Rock Music; since their management company had a contract with EMI, after the band left the company and dropped the producer, the contract was broken.

Dave's departure and Underclass Hero (2006 - Present)

Drummer Steve Jocz singing during the song "Pain for Pleasure"

On, May 11, 2006, Dave Baksh announced in a statement through his management company that he was leaving Sum 41 to work with his new band, Brown Brigade. Baksh's departure from the band was said to have been due to his desire to play music with a more classical metal sound.[19] The very next day, Deryck made the first official comment on the subject in an official message board post addressing Dave's departure.[20] Deryck confirmed Dave's departure and announced that the band would only be replacing Dave with a touring guitarist, who wouldn't be in videos, photo shoots, albums, or have any decision-making power in the band.

Recording of the band's fifth studio album, Underclass Hero, began on November 8, 2006 and was finished on March 14, 2007. The album, backed by the first single and title track, "Underclass Hero", was released on July 24, 2007. It debuted at #7 in the United States, making it the band's highest U.S. chart position to date.[21] The album was nominated for a Juno Award, for "Rock Album of the Year", however, it lost to Finger Eleven's Them vs. You vs. Me.[8] Template:Sound sample box align right

Sum 41 "Walking Disaster" (2007)
Sum 41 Returned to more of a pop sound with "Walking Disaster".
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Template:Sample box end On April 17, 2007, the band released a song on iTunes called "March of the Dogs". Although not a single, the band released it early because, according to Deryck, "the record won't be out until the summer." Deryck Whibley was threatened with deportation for the song, because he metaphorically 'kills the president' in it.[22][23][24] "Walking Disaster" is the second single from Underclass Hero. The music video for the song aired on MTV2 on August 20th. The third and final single was "With Me." The video was first seen on the band's MySpace page on February 28, 2008.

The band began touring for the month of October 2007 with fellow Canadians, Finger Eleven across Canada. Die Mannequin would be opening, then Finger Eleven, then Sum 41 would close each show. A press release stated that Deryck Whibley had sustained a herniated disk, causing them to cancel the rest of their shows on the Strength In Numbers Tour with Finger Eleven.[25] After Deryck recovered from his injury, the band recommenced the "Underclass Hero" tour in March 2008. They toured until early July, and then began preparation for their next album.[26]

On August 7, 2008, Cone announced in a journal entry on the band's official site that the band currently takes a time off from Sum 41 by doing other things, before they'll start working on the next album. Cone is working on the second album by his side-project The Operation M.D., Steve will be touring as a drummer for The Vandals during the summer, and Deryck is currently touring with his wife, Avril Lavigne.[27]

Other Projects

Internet Videos

Cone during a show

Touring in support of Chuck, Sum 41 played videos before their set which were deemed "unsuitable for children". Controversy arose over some of the videos, due to the violent nature of them.[28] They have made several other videos, including Basketball Butcher and 1-800-Justice, which were originally available exclusively on Sum 41's now defunct fan club, the Goon Platoon.

Sum 41's most recent internet video endeavor is a "weekly"[29] series entitled SUM 41 - Road to Ruin. The trailer was posted on January 8, 2007 on the Sum 41 web-page. The first episode debuted on January 21, following their exploits on their Singapore 2003 tour. Since then, their episodes have included footage of drunkenness in New Orleans, setting off a fire alarm in a hotel, and a feature about their first ever tour manager, amongst other things. So far, they have released 9 episodes. They also did a series of cartoons based on superhero 'Stickman moss' who saved the world from anti punk figures, as they put the world of punk rock in danger.

Side Projects and Collaborations

Shortly after touring for "Does This Look Infected?", Iggy Pop recruited the band for his new album, Skull Ring. Deryck co-wrote the first single from the album, "Little Know It All", and joined Iggy on The Late Show with David Letterman to promote the song. Iggy said he chose Sum 41 because "they have balls."[30] Following their September 11, 2005 show in Quebec City, Quebec, the band went on a touring hiatus, although on April 17, 2006, Sum 41 played at a tribute to Iggy Pop, joining Iggy on stage for "Little Know It All" and "Lust For Life".

During the band's touring hiatus, Deryck focused on his producing career, writing and producing two songs for Avril Lavigne's album, The Best Damn Thing. Stevo recorded his first video as director for a Canadian band called The Midway State, and Cone started a side project with Todd Morse of H2O and Juliette and the Licks. The two-person band, named The Operation M.D., released their debut album, We Have an Emergency, in early 2007. As well as playing bass, keyboards, and acoustic guitar, Cone contributed backing vocals as well as leading vocals on three songs. The Operation album was co-produced and mixed by Deryck Whibley. Their first single video, "Sayonara", was directed by Stevo.

In December of 2007, Cone did an artist on artist interview with Slash of Velvet Revolver. They talked about Slash's experiences while in Guns N' Roses and his life now in Velvet Revolver. This was done as part of a MySpace project, and the interview was posted on MySpace in 3 parts.[31]

Music style and influences

Early influence on their music included the Beastie Boys and NOFX, especially in their All Killer No Filler rap rock music found in the "Fat Lip" and "What We're All About" singles. Their later music in the album Does This Look Infected? had heavy influence from The Offspring, as the band itself commented. Also, some metal influence coming from bands like Iron Maiden is noted.[32] In the song "Fat Lip", the quote "Maiden and Priest were the gods that we praised" refers to Iron Maiden and Judas Priest.[33] Their album Chuck features a series of songs that can be compared with thrash metal or Alternative metal, and they have named Metallica as one of the main influences on their metal music. The band has recently named The Beatles and Oasis as big influences.[34]

The band's early musical style is often compared to Blink-182 and Green Day, owing to the catchy melodies and humor present in the work of both bands.[35] The genre of Sum 41's music has been disputed among fans because of the complex combination of different musical styles and much more mature, serious and heavy sound in later albums. Most fans and critics agree that Half Hour of Power through All Killer No Filler was purely pop punk, but Does This Look Infected? started moving toward a heavier, alternative rock and alternative metal, with Chuck being mostly alternative metal, and Underclass Hero a revival of the pop punk/punk rock style.[36] The argument is centralized around the punk streak of the band, and they have been labeled as pop punk, punk rock, alternative rock, and alternative metal.[37][38][39] The band is known for its often politically-social music found in songs like "Fat Lip", "Over My Head (Better Off Dead)", "Still Waiting", "No Reason", "We're All To Blame", and "March of the Dogs".[40]

Line-ups

(1996-1997)[41]
(1997-1999)[41]
(1999-2006)[41]
(2006-2007)
(2007-present)

Discography

Main article: Sum 41 discography

Studio albums

References

  1. ^ "Juno Awards 2003". Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  2. ^ Edwards, Gavin (2001-12-17). "People of the Year 2001: Sum 41". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2008-08-19. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  3. ^ "Artists Chart History". Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  4. ^ "Artists Chart History". Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ "Sum 41 Past Tour Dates". Island Records. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  6. ^ "Aquarius Records: About". Aquarius Records. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ "Juno Awards 2003". Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  8. ^ a b "Sum 41 nominated for A Juno". Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  9. ^ "Answers.com Topic: Sum 41". Answers.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  10. ^ "Artists- Sum 41". 100xr.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  11. ^ "Cross Your T's and Gouge Your I's — Youtube". Youtube. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  12. ^ "Sum 41 Bio". Vh1.com. 2007. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  13. ^ "Billboard.com -Artist Chart History- Sum 41". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  14. ^ Davis, Darren (2001-09-20). "Sum 41 News on Yahoo! music". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  15. ^ Edwards, Gavin (2001-10-11). Canadian Teenage Rock and Roll Machine. Rolling Stone. p. 50. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  16. ^ D'Angelo, Joe (2004-03-22). "Sum 41 Plan Trip To War-Torn Congo". MTV.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  17. ^ D'Angelo, Joe (2004-06-03). "Sum 41 Caught in Violent Outbreak in Congo". MTV.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ "Billboard.com -Artist Chart History- Sum 41". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  19. ^ Montgomery, James (2006-05-12). "Sum 41 Guitarist Quits to Focus on New Band". MTV.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  20. ^ Whibley, Deryck (2006-05-12). "Sum 41 Board Message". Sum 41 Forums. Island Records. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  21. ^ "The Billboard 200- Underclass Hero". Billboard.com. 2007-10-06. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  22. ^ "Sum 41-Whibley Threatened with Deportation". Contactmusic.com. 2007-07-22. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  23. ^ "Deryck Whibley Claims He Was Nearly Deported, Lily Allen Aims at Courtney Love, R. Kelly's Lawyers Start Their Ignitions". Rolling Stone. 2007-07-24. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  24. ^ "Sum 41's Deryck Whibley threatened with deportation". Punknews.org. 2007-07-24. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  25. ^ Singerman, Michelle (2007-10-23). "Deryck Whibley's Weak Back Ends Strength In Numbers Tour Early". chartattack.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  26. ^ Rivait, Lindsey (2008-03-19). "Sum 41: the Underclass Heroes bounce back". The Lance. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  27. ^ "Sum 41". Retrieved 2008-08-22. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  28. ^ D'Angelo, Joe (2004-11-19). "Sum 41 Video Skit Deemed Unsuitable For Children — Band Says, 'Good!'". MTV.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  29. ^ (The band originally stated it was a weekly series; but it was often months between the release of each video.)
  30. ^ "Sum 41 Artists Bio". Melodic.net. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  31. ^ "Cone & Slash". Theresnosolution.com. 2007-12-03. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  32. ^ "Sum 41: Rolling Stone". Retrieved 2008-08-19. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  33. ^ "Fat Lip Lyrics". Retrieved 2008-08-20. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  34. ^ "Sum 41 Artists Bio". 2007. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  35. ^ Lamb, Bill. "Top 10 Punk Pop Albums". About.com. Retrieved 2008-08-19. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  36. ^ Bansal, Vik. "Sum 41 Album reviews". Retrieved 2008-08-19. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  37. ^ "Sum 41: Underclass Hero (2007) Review". Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  38. ^ Wood, Mikael (2007-07-20). "Underclass Hero: Music Review". Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  39. ^ Loftus, Johnny. "Allmusic: Sum 41 Overview". Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  40. ^ Hoard, Christian (2007-8-23). "Underclass Hero Review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2008-08-19. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  41. ^ a b c d W., Phili. "Sum 41 Band Bio". Theresnosolution.com. Retrieved 2008-08-17. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

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