Reviews

How this band has changed……all through I have been a fan of Sum 41 but there was always something missing in their previous albums and it has come out on this record. In Half Hour of Power they were teenagers who came out with their quick get it over and done with songs. There was no mucking around. All Killer, No Filler moved them to a punk-pop regulation band with Derycks voice the only real distinguishing factor.  
 
Then Does This Look Infected? That was a confusing record for me, it was good, but uneven. The evidence of change was there in Hooch, Still Waiting and All Messed Up, but the step was not quite taken. For each of those records I gave them around a 6-7/10 for each album. This has to be a 9/10 performance. They have found a word called “Change” in their music. I am not going to call this a “mature” Sum 41 as many reviewers have said, because it isn’t. They have simply turned up the amps and actually have written lyrics that have more meaning. Jimmy Eat World’s Futures is an album that tears up over Bleed American but that isn’t called a maturing album. It’s simply better.  
 
When I first played Chuck and heard No Reason and We’re All To Blame, it was regulation Sum 41. Although that said, No Reason’s Chorus is the one of the best chorus’ of the year. Then I heard Angels With Dirty Faces and that blew me away. The start is soothing before a punk verse, a perfectly panned out pop-punk chorus and the spoken bridge caps it off. Then Some Day, a slow Sum 41 song that doesn’t break out into a fast melody at any time is a credit to all Sum 41 listeners that they have broke they own formula and made a new sound. I don’t know what they are doing on Slipping Away but I’ll give them points for courage in doing such a song. Welcome To Hell is a vintage Half Hour of Power song, 2 minutes of full on music and hell! To finish the album (unless you have bonus tracks) 88 relives the whole album in one song. It starts with punk-pop, goes through a long solo of solid classic punk guitar and finishes with a slow ending to take you from the high of the guitar solo and to clear your mind and for me, reflect on the album.  
 
A very solid, ground-breaking Sum 41 album that has impressed me greatly (guest review: Dylan from punkunited.com).