Sum 41 biography
Sum 41 is a Canadian Punk Rock band from Ajax, Ontario. The band was formed in 1996 and currently consists of members Deryck Whibley (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Tom Thacker (lead guitar, backing vocals), Jason McCaslin (bass guitar, backing vocals) and Steve Jocz (drums).
In 1999, the band signed an international record deal with Island Records. The band released their debut album, All Killer, No Filler in 2001. The band achieved mainstream success with their first single from the album, "Fat Lip", which reached number-one on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and remains the band's most successful single to date. All Killer No Filler' was certified platinum in the United States, Canada and in the UK. The band has since released four more studio albums: Does This Look Infected? (2002), Chuck (2004) Underclass Hero (2007) and Screaming Bloody Murder (2011).
The band often performs more than 300 times each year and holds long global tours, most of which last more than a year. They have been nominated for seven Juno Awards and have won twice (Group of the Year in 2002 and Rock Album of the Year for Chuck in 2005). Sum 41 was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance for the song Blood In My Eyes, however they lost to the Foo Fighters.
History
Formative years (1996-2000)
Sum 41 was formed by singer-songwriter Deryck Whibley and drummer Steve Jocz, under the name
'Kaspir' after Whibley convinced Jocz to join his band. Jocz was a drummer in another band and Whibley was convinced that "he was the best drummer around". The duo then added Dave Baksh as lead guitarist a year later and after going through several bassists, ended up picking McCaslin to complete their lineup.
The group began as a NOFX cover band named "Kaspir". They decided to change their name for a Supernova show on September 28, 1996 which happened to be the 41st day of summer.
In 1998, the band recorded a demo tape on Compact Cassette which they sent to record companies in the hope of getting a recording contract. These demo tapes are rare and are the only recordings known that are with the original bassist, Richard Roy.
From 1999 to 2000, the band recorded several new songs. The Introduction to Destruction and later the Cross The T's and Gouge Your I's DVDs both contained the self-recorded footage, which saw them performing a dance to "Makes No Difference" in front of a theater.
Sum 41 released the EP, Half Hour of Power on June 27, 2000. The first single released by the band was "Makes No Difference", which had two different music videos. The first video was put together using the video clips sent to the record label and the second showed the band performing at a house party. The EP was certified gold in Canada. Following the success of the EP, the band began working on their first full-length album.
« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 next » Biography from 
, the free encyclopedia.
It may not have been reviewed by a professional editor, and recent changes may not show up straight away. See the latest version of this article. Used under licence. Subject to disclaimers.