I immediately knew that this was going to be a special night in Minneapolis, where nostalgia would be seeping out of everyone’s pores and where music made you feel like a total street punk kid all over again! Sum 41 brought their “15th Anniversary: Does This Look Infected Tour” to a sold-out Varsity Theater in Minneapolis with special guests Seaway and Super Whatevr.
I’ve been to a lot of shows where the feeling felt empty and disappointing. Not because of the performance of the bands, but because in large part, people generally don’t support live music anymore. Sum 41 told me to take those feelings I have about live music nowadays and stick them where the sun doesn’t shine because they were all about having a good time and they showed genuine gratitude for what they were going to bring to the Minneapolis crowd!
Super Whatevr was the first band to take the stage. I had the quite fortunate pleasure of interviewing this upstart band out of California as they were opening for Movements at nearby The Garage in Burnsville. They brought a unique flair to the night, and their performance showed me that they have gained an ample amount of confidence throughout their brief set and the crowd seemed to have dug and appreciated the vibe that they brought to the night.
Seaway brought the emo vibe and it felt like the early 2000’s all over again with their vibe. Their musicianship was tight and their energy was a perfect sound for opening for Sum 41.
Sum 41 brought the flair, fire, fury, and they absolutely sounded on point all night. When they broke into the concert opener “The Hell Song”, the crowd immediately went into a frenzy unlike which I haven’t seen in quite a long time. The crazy thing was there were people my age that remembered the nostalgia that Sum 41 brought and were just moshing, crowdsurfing, and had the energy of that 15 year old streetpunk kid that I mentioned earlier. It was refreshing seeing an anniversary tour where they enjoyed what 15 years of “Does This Look Infected” brought the crowd. Sum 41 had a nice tribute to Linkin Park in their drum solo, which was unique that a song was actually played instead of drummers showing off(to those drummers, I know that you’re good, play music, I came to a concert not a damn drum clinic), and they had a unique cover of “We Will Rock You” by Queen that would’ve made Freddie Mercury smile down from heaven, yes it was a more punk version of the song, but it had that attitude that Queen had in their smash hit. The crowd went ballistic in the setlist closer “Fat Lip”, which is their biggest hit.
My camera broke before the concert, I’m in the process of getting a new camera. Nonetheless, Sum 41 brought the feelings back on what it means to be a live band. It is about having a good time, throwing your cares out the window, and just rock the hell out to some amazing music. All these years later, and Sum 41 is still a premier live band.
Sum 41 will be playing some one-off festivals and touring Europe this summer. Check out the tour dates below.
Friday, June 15th- Rock Fest in Saint-Andre-Avellin, Canada
Thursday, July 12th- Rock USA Festival in Oshkosh, Wisconsin (w/Godsmack, Halestorm, Bush, Pop Evil, and DevilDriver)
Saturday, July 14th- Grace Hartman Amphitheatre in Sudbury, Canada(w/Grandson)
Sunday, July 15th- Fest D’ete Festival in Quebec, Canada
Tuesday, July 17th- Vans Warped Tour in Toronto, Canada
Friday, August 17th- Festival Fete Du Bruit in Landerneau, France
Sunday, August 19th- FM4 Frequency Festival in Sankt Polten, Austria
Tuesday, August 21st- Posthalle in Wurzburg, Germany
Wednesday, August 22nd- Parkbuhne in Leipzig, Germany
Friday, August 24th- Venoge Festival in Penthalaz, Switzerland
Saturday, August 25th- Reading Festival in Reading, United Kingdom
Sunday, August 26th- Leeds Festival in Leeds, United Kingdom
Tuesday, August 28th- Turbinenhalle in Oberhausen, Germany
Thursday, August 30th- Beat Festival in Empoli, Italy
Friday, August 31st- Rimini Park Rock in Rimini, Italy
Saturday, September 1st- Arena Alpe Adria in Lignano Sabbiadoro, Italy
Friday, September 14th- Riot Fest in Chicago, Illinois
For tickets and further information on any of the shows listed above, click here.
Fans can find Sum 41 at the following locations:
