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Label: Rise Records
Released: 29th March 2024
After almost three decades of making music together, Sum 41 bid farewell to the scene. But they’re not bowing out quietly. Refusing to settle for a standard 12-track swansong, they’ve spun their final record into a behemoth double album. After straddling the line between genres for most of their career, ‘Heaven :x: Hell’ neatly splits its time between pop-punk and metal, respectively.
‘Heaven’ embodies the quintessential skate punk sound they helped to forge in the early noughties. With songs that easily could have been pulled from anywhere in the last two decades, the first half of the album is nostalgia-laden but in no way stuck in the past. It’s an animated explosion of youthful energy, with plenty of opportunities for singalongs and air drumming alike. Like the two-stepping earworm ‘Johnny Libertine’ that’s lined with the band’s signature tongue-in-cheek humour and boundless stamina.
The halfway point of the record marks the transition into heavier territory (‘Hell’) and is where Sum 41 truly come into their stride. Crammed full of radioactive guitar solos, the strings sing as blood, sweat, and tears leak from the speakers. ‘Over The Edge’ sees Zummo send out a barrage of percussion, attacking the drums with a violent fervour as Whibley’s gritty voice shouts out in urgency. With an eye-watering guitar solo and anthemic chorus, ‘You Wanted War’ is a beautiful fusion of the metal influences that built the band. An unexpected but not unwelcome cover of ‘Paint It Black’ aptly follows, bringing a modern twist to the Rolling Stones classic.
Despite its imposing 20-count tracklist, ‘Heaven :x: Hell’ never drags, instead firing through hit after hit; time flies when you’re having fun, and Sum 41’s discography is a testament to that. It’s a grand culmination of their work so far.
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