Sum 41 Info

Though members of rival school bands, Deryck Whibley, Steve Jocz and Dave Daksh (ex-member) got together to form a cover band, first named Kaspir. The threesome then changed their name to Sum 41, 41 days into the summer of 1996. The bass guitar spot (after the turnover of two players) was finally filled on a permanent basis by Cone McCaslin.

Initially the band played to small local venues. They also sent out lots of demo tapes. Eventually, largely on the strength of their notoriously riotous live gigs, Island Records signed them up early in 2000. Sum 41's debut album All Killer No Filler came out a year later. Immediately Sum 41 were a huge hit. The first single off the album, Fat Lip hit the #1 spot in the US rock chart. The next singles were In Too Deep and Motivation.

The band's second studio album was Does This Look Infected?, a rougher, more-edged sound than heard previously. The band embarked on a massive tour to promote the album, performing over 200 times in the following year.

In 2004, the band went to Congo with War Child Canada to help in the making of a documentary about the horrendous civil war. When fighting threatened to encircle them, the band made a lucky escape with the help of Chuck Pelletier, a UN worker. As a thank you, the group named their third album, released in 2004, Chuck. The record had a weighty, serious tone, which presumably reflected the experiences of their Congo trip.

Dave Daksh was a founding member, but in 2006 he announced his intention to leave Sum 41. His departure was caused by musical differences - his new band, Brown Brigade is more metal-punk than Sum 41's pop-punk. The remaining trio returned to the studio, eventually to release the band's fourth studio album, Underclass Hero. In its first week the record hit #7 in the US album charts, their highest position to-date.

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