Sum 41 farewell all killer, no filler Winnipeg fans treated to celebration of pop-punk vets By: Eva Wasney Posted: 11:29 PM CST Monday, Jan. 20, 2025

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This article was published 20/01/2025 (562 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As the temperature outside approached -41 C with the windchill, a rowdy crowd gathered at Canada Life Centre on Monday night for a nostalgic farewell to pop-punk outfit Sum 41.

Formed in 1996, the band of snot-nosed suburban youths from Ajax, Ont., found a global audience in the angsty days of the early aughts. In 2023, Sum 41 announced it was disbanding following the release of its final album and one last world tour.

If Deryck Whibley, Dave Baksh, Tom Thacker, Jason McCaslin and Frank Zummo are weary from a long year on the road with Tour of the Setting Sum, they didn’t let on.

The band — including Whibley in a black tank and his signature blonde spikes — came out swinging and continued thrashing through its well-known catalogue for a riotous, occasionally emotional two-hour send-off.

If you listened to any amount of Top 40 radio or watched any modicum of music television in the 2000s, you’ve heard Sum 41. Like the title of its debut album, All Killer No Filler, the band has churned out dozens of catchy, era-defining songs.

Monday’s setlist paid fitting homage to the last 30-odd years and gave the audience ample opportunity to sing along to longtime favourites, such as Motivation, Underclass Hero and Some Say.

Minor attention was paid to newer releases, including Heaven x Hell; the band’s eighth and final album which aims to capture the full spectrum of Sum 41 sounds — from its energetic, pop-punk beginnings to its later heavy metal leanings.

The album’s name also nods to Whibley’s recently released memoir, Walking Disaster: My Life Through Heaven and Hell, in which the lead singer details a difficult childhood, a tumultuous rise to fame and allegations of sexual abuse levelled against former manager Greig Nori..

Monday night, however, was a celebration of Sum 41’s public career. An end-of-an-era gift to fans.

The party was set against a towering physical backdrop made to look like old show posters and under a dizzying light show. A giant, inflatable middle-finger-wielding skeleton rose from the back of the stage. While some bands save the special effects for the finale, the fireballs and smoke and balloons and confetti were flying early and often.

Notably, there wasn’t a video screen in sight, but Whibley, and his larger-than-life stage presence, had no trouble holding the audience’s attention.

There were fleeting moments of stillness, such as the lead singer’s performance of Pieces from a centre-stage piano, which launched directly into the swirling anti-authoritarianism of Fat Lip.

During the first of two encores, Whibley paused to acknowledge the moment and thank fans for their support over the years.

“We’re gonna f—king miss you,” he said, with hand on heart.

After one more blast of confetti, the house lights came on, the band bowed and walked off the stage to I’ve Gotta Be Me by Sammy Davis Jr.

Minutes — minutes! — later, the group quietly returned for an acoustic rendition of So Long Goodbye. It was a cute original to close with, but either an ill-conceived ruse — much of the audience had already exited, thinking the show was finished — or a sneaky parting gift for die-hards. Whatever, it’s Sum 41’s last hurrah and they can play to an empty arena if they want to.

Canadian punk contemporaries Gob kicked things into gear with an opening set laden with F-bombs and localized crowd engagement. The Juno-nominated band from Langley, B.C. — which includes Sum 41 guitarist Tom Thacker as lead vocalist — demanded hand clapping and “booty shaking,” while reminiscing between songs about playing in Winnipeg at the Royal Albert Arms in the ‘90s.

Gob spun through several early 2000s hits, such Give up the Grudge and I Hear You Calling, before relinquishing the stage to PUP — an irreverent, and slightly more contemporary, punk rock foursome from Toronto.

The band released its first self-titled album in 2013 and has since been twice shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize. Although not used to playing in “big ol’ hockey arenas,” PUP inspired the first of many mosh pits with a fun, fast-paced setlist, including 2022’s Totally Fine and Paranoid — a brand new single that’s apparently been a beast to play live.

“We nailed it,” reported lead singer Stefan Babcock. Between the banter, behind-the-head guitar playing and mile-high verticals, they sure did.

From the openers to the main event, Monday night was a fun showcase of approachable Canadian punk anthems old, new and timeless. The crowd was equally multi-generational, filled with many first-wave fans and their kids — a cohort of young listeners who can now say they saw Sum 41 live for the last time.

The band plays five more shows before taking its final bow in Toronto on Jan. 30. Sum 41 is set to be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at the 2025 Juno Awards in March.

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com