Sum 41
Sum 41 is a Canadian band known for blending pop-punk and metal elements, established in 1996 by Deryck Whibley and Steve Jocz in Ajax, Ontario. The classic lineup included Whibley as the vocalist and guitarist, Jason "Cone" McCaslin on bass, guitarist Dave Baksh, and drummer Jocz. Their debut album, *All Killer No Filler*, released in 2001, featured the hit single "Fat Lip," which reached the top of Billboard's modern rock chart, contributing to the album's platinum status in several countries. Over the years, Sum 41 has released multiple successful albums, including *Chuck* and *Underclass Hero*, both certified platinum in Canada.
The band is recognized for their energetic performances and has toured extensively with notable punk bands such as Blink-182. In addition to their musical contributions, Sum 41 made a meaningful impact with their documentary *Rocked: Sum 41 in Congo*, which highlighted their visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in support of War Child Canada. Following various lineup changes, including the return of Baksh in 2016 and the introduction of drummer Frank Zummo, Sum 41 announced that their upcoming album, *Heaven :x: Hell*, set for release in March 2024, will serve as their farewell album, coinciding with a farewell world tour concluding in early 2025.
Sum 41
Music group
Deryck Whibley
- Born: March 21, 1980
- Place of Birth: Scarborough, Ontario
Jason McCaslin
- Born: September 3, 1980
- Place of Birth: North York, Ontario
Tom Thacker
- Born: April 11, 1978
- Place of Birth: Langley, British Columbia
- Deryck Whibley
- Singer and guitarist
- Jason McCaslin
- Bassist
- Also known as: Cone
- Tom Thacker
- Guitarist
- Also known as: Thomas Arnold Thacker
Deryck Whibley
Occupation: Vocalist and guitarist
Jason McCaslin
Occupation: Bassist
Tom Thacker
Occupation: Guitarist
Contribution: Sum 41 is a Canadian pop-punk-metal band, whose classic lineup included vocalist and guitarist Deryck Whibley, guitarist Dave Baksh, bassist Jason “Cone” McCaslin, and drummer Steve Jocz. Baksh and Jocz had left the band by 2013, but Baksh later returned. Whibley and Jocz founded the band in 1996, the summer before their senior year of high school in Ajax, Ontario. The two recruited Baksh to join the group and, after trying out a number of bassists, McCaslin became part of the band. Tom Thacker replaced Baksh in 2006. Sum 41 has won two Juno Awards, for group of the year in 2002 and for rock album of the year, for Chuck, in 2005.
Early Years
In 1998, the original members of Sum 41 sent a demo tape to several record companies and, in 1999, they started signing deals. Their first EP, Half Hour of Power, was released in 2000, and the band’s international debut album, All Killer No Filler, came out in 2001. A single from that album, “Fat Lip,” topped Billboard’s modern rock tracks chart, and All Killer No Filler went platinum in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Japan and gold in France, Indonesia, and Australia. Sum 41’s three subsequent albums, Does This Look Infected? (2002), Chuck (2004), and Underclass Hero (2007) were all certified platinum in Canada. Screaming Bloody Murder followed in 2011. The band has toured much of the world and has shared the stage with well-known punk rock bands such as Blink-182 and the Offspring.
Documentary in the Congo
In 2005, the band released Rocked: Sum 41 in Congo, a 2005 documentary about the band’s 2004 trip to the Democratic Republic of the Congo on behalf of War Child Canada, a branch of a British children’s charity. Band members met with former child soldiers and others affected by the ongoing civil war. Five days into the filming, the hotel where the group was staying was within range of a battle between rebel soldiers and government troops.
Canadian United Nations peacekeeper Chuck Pelletier got the band members safely out of the war zone in armored vehicles. Sum 41 named its next album in his honor, which went on to win the 2005 Juno Award for best rock album. Whibley married Canadian pop singer Avril Lavigne in 2006; the couple divorced in 2010.
Lineup Changes and Subsequent Albums
Following the release of Chuck, Baksh left the group to pursue other projects with his new band Brown Brigade. Whibley, Jocz, and McCaslin continued to tour and, in 2007, returned to the studio to produce Underclass Hero. In 2009, multi-instrumentalist Thacker, who had joined the band as a touring guitarist without creative control, began producing material and recording for the band’s upcoming album. Sum 41 released its fifth studio album, Screaming Bloody Murder, in 2011.
In 2012, Sum 41 was nominated for a Grammy Award for best hard rock/metal performance. After Sum 41 toured heavily for a two-year period, in 2013, drummer Jocz announced he was leaving the band. Jocz was replaced by drummer Frank Zummo and Baksh rejoined the band in time for the 2016 release of the group’s sixth studio album, 13 Voices.
With a lineup of Whibley, McCaslin, Baksh, Thacker, and Zummo, Sum 41 released the album Order in Decline in 2019. Four years later, the band announced that its next album would serve as its farewell album and the band would go its separate ways. That album, Heaven :x: Hell, was released in March 2024, with the band embarking on a farewell world tour slated to conclude in early 2025.
Bibliography
“Avril Lavigne Marries Deryck Whibley.” People, 15 July 2006, people.com/celebrity/avril-lavigne-marries-deryck-whibley/. Accessed 19 Sept. 2024.
“Drummer Steve Jocz Quits Sum 41.” NME, 18 Apr. 2013, www.nme.com/news/music/sum-41-10-1250167. Accessed 19 Sept. 2024.
Gargan, Scott. “Sum 41 Now Veterans of Warped Tour.” CT Post. Hearst Corporation, 7 July 2010. 19 Aug. 2013.
Havens, Lyndsey. “Sum 41 Opens Up About Final Album, Farewell Tour & More." Billboard, 29 Mar. 2024, www.billboard.com/music/rock/sum-41-final-album-farewell-tour-interview-1235644354/. Accessed 19 Sept. 2024.
MacNeil, Jason. “Sum 41 Rocker Hurt in Bar Attack.” Toronto Sun. Canoe Sun Media, 6 Aug. 2010. Web. 19 Aug. 2013.
McLean, Steve. “Sum 41.” Canadian Encyclopedia, 22 Mar. 2015, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sum-41-emc. Accessed 19 Sept. 2024.