It was finally that time; everyone had been waiting for months for this day to arrive. Sum 41 was finally in Phoenix, Arizona! They were on their final tour: ” The Tour of the Setting Sum”. Sum 41 was joined by a couple other really good bands, The Pretenders and Many Eyes.
Sum 41 was always a staple in my iPod (when they came out), before that I had to buy their CDs from FYE or Tower Records. Wow its been a long time since I’ve been in any of those stores; yes I grew up in the generation that carried portable CD players in their pocket-that was my lifeline and it went everywhere with me. These stores no longer exist, they are just distant memories from what feels like a past life. I remember the first CD I purchased from Sum 41 was Does This Look Infected?.
I remember going and wanting to get this CD as my birthday gift from my cousin but her husband would not buy it for me because of the cover art and he said my mom would not approve. Jokes on him I went a few days later with my mom to buy the CD. My mom was amazing, she let me listen to whatever I wanted without judgment and she even loved some of the bands I listened to.
Okay, now back to Sum 41s concert in Phoenix! The Financial Theater looked quiet on the outside but the traffic was a nightmare, which told me the venue was going to be bustling! As I entered the venue, people were purchasing merch and drinks before the show while it was still quiet.
By the time Sum 41 came and took to the stage the venue had filled up quit nicely! The stage was a T-shape so the band could get closer to the audience, which is a fantastic touch. Sum 41 is a pop-punk/skate-punk from Ajax, Ontario. This Canadian band’s lineup is formed by Deryck Whibley – vocals/guitar, Dave “Brownsound” Baksh – guitar, Jason “Cone” McCaslin – bass, Tom Thacker – guitar and Frank Zummo – drums.
The band opened up their set with AC/DC’s “T.N.T” as their intro and walk on song. The audience screamed as the band came out after the kabuki fell. The first song they performed was “Motivation” from their 2001 All Killer, No Filler. It was the perfect way to hype the audience up for their last show in Phoenix. The audience loved it and sang along word for word, enjoying and soaking up every moment.
The second song of the set was “The Hell Song”; this was the song and I mean the song. This song is what set the night on fire! Every single person sang this song, jumped in the air and headbanged. I remember when this song first came out and the music video that accompanied it. It was a game changer in the pop-punk world and really set Sum 41 for even more success.
Their set was one of the best of the years. They graced their fans with confetti, smoke cannons and fire! They went over the top and put one some of the best production for their final show. Whibley had great stage presence. He moved all over the stage, addressed and interacted with the audience the whole night. They put on such an amazing performance set that also included their songs: “In Too Deep”, “Pieces”, “Fat Lip”, and ” Still Waiting”. They ended their set with not one but two encores that the audience ate up!
Sum 41
The first band of the night was Many Eyes. Many Eyes formed in 2022. Members of the band live in New York and Connecticut. The band formed when Keith Buckley formerly from Every Time I Die connected with Nick who is the Owner of Dexter’s Lab Recording and Charlie Bellmore from Corpsegrinder. The rest was history after they connected. The bands current lineup for tour is formed by Craig Vittorio, Sean Vallie, Nick Bellmore and Keith Buckley.
The band took to the stage and gave a strong performance. Their music hit hard and caught the attention of the audience. Many people who were not fans were now fans. I remember hearing someone say they were shocked to see Buckley, they did not realize that was his new band. They were extremely excited to be there and to watch them perform. They put on a fun performance
Many Eyes
