Words: Miljan Milekić
If I were to count all the bands that had a bigger influence on me in my formative years than Sum 41, I could do it on the fingers of one hand. Hell, I’d probably have one or two to spare. So, when the news broke out that the band would end after 29 years of career, it felt like being hit by a bus. However, they aren’t going away quietly, as if “quiet” was ever the word that could be associated with the Ajax, Ontario mob. First, they released an amazing double album ‘Heaven :x: Hell,’ before hitting the stages all over the world for a massive Tour of The Setting Sum. And now, with only a couple of Canadian shows left, and just days away from their final show in Toronto, we connected with bassist Jake ‘Cone’ McCaslin, for a quick chat. Check it out below!
OK, first of all, who in their right mind decides to go on a cross-Canadian tour in January? Who made you do that?
Cone: Well, we’ve done it before, this is not the first time! (laughs) I think it just had to do with the fact that we wanted to end our career in Canada. We’re from the Toronto area, so we wanted to end our career in Toronto, and that’s just how it worked out. We set out on this world tour back in February, we’ve hit all these different places, and we thought – “Well, we have to end in Toronto. We have to end in Canada.” And it just so happened that it was in January. (laughs)
And how different is this tour compared to previous ones, knowing it’s the last one? Do the shows feel more emotional because of it?
Cone: Yeah, for one, we haven’t really toured Canada a lot in the last couple of years, so it feels good to be back in our home country. And yeah, I guess it’s starting to feel a little bit more real. I think I saw we have, maybe 10 shows left, and then it’s all over. So it’s starting to feel like – “Wow, the end is coming!” Back in February, when we looked ahead, it kinda felt just like another tour, because we had a lot to do. There were a lot of tour dates – we were out for around 200 days last year. So now, being on this tour and back in Canada, it’s starting to feel like I can actually see the end. And yeah, it feels a little strange, to be honest.
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The decision to disband came as a huge surprise to many, especially since it seemed like after going through some rough patches and some testing time you got back to the top and become bigger than you ever were. Can you tell me more about the reasons behind it?
Cone: Well, it was Deryck, really. He came to us and said he thought it was time for the band to end. He didn’t have too much more to give to it. And we were at a good place at the time, and, as you said, the biggest we’ve ever been. You know, a lot of bands will break up because they dislike each other, or maybe their career is going downhill and no one’s coming to see them anymore, or they’re just not having fun. And I think none of that applies to us.
We’re in a unique position where we are getting along, people are still coming to see us, and we’re having fun. It’s almost the opposite of what other bands do to break up. So, we just thought – “Well, let’s go out while we still have a good feeling about all this.” If it was up to me, would the band keep going? Probably – I don’t necessarily want it to end, but I also respect that Deryck doesn’t want to do this anymore and wants to try other things. And in turn, it will give all of us time to do other things, which could be really cool.
On this tour, you are also bringing your new album ‘Heaven :x: Hell,’ which, as someone who has been following the band for more than 20 years now, I think is one of your best works. Can you tell me more about it and how did it come together?
Cone: It’s hard to say, but the downtime and, you could probably say the pandemic in a way, because like every other band, it forced us to be off the road. We just had time. We didn’t have any time restrictions. We didn’t have any deadlines, or record labels saying that the record needed to be done by a certain date. In the past, we’d have to record albums because we’d have tour dates lined up. Sometimes, we would have like three weeks to finish the record and go on tour.
So, there was none of that. We just recorded when the songs came. We had two and a half years of recording and perfecting them, and then coming back to things and recording more. So, in a way, we kinda have to thank the pandemic for how well that album turned out. (laughs) If there was no pandemic, we wouldn’t be forced to be home, and the album could’ve turned out a lot different. We would probably have some kind of deadline and be on tour in between. It would’ve just been a whole different thing. So yeah, I think it was just time, really.
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And how did you decide to split the album into two parts and do the double record? Was it something you planned from the beginning, or something you came with along the way?
Cone: That came up when it was all finished. You know, we had recorded – I think there are some songs that we recorded that didn’t even make the album. So, when it was all done, we sat back and listened to it all, and we were like – “Well, that song probably can’t fit with that song on a regular album. It sounds like two different bands.” But as we started listening to 22 or however many songs, we all had this realization that it could fit on the same album if it was a double album. We were all in a group chat and came up with this idea to put the heavy stuff on one side, and the poppy stuff on the other. And now it works. If it was one album, it would probably be a little strange, but as a double album, it works really, really well. And we’ve always wanted to do a double album. We almost tried to do a double album on ‘Underclass Hero,’ but I guess, at the time shied away from it. So, we’ve always wanted to do it, and now we did.
So, ten more shows, and then what? What’s next for you? I know you have your radio show, but are there any other projects in the works?
Cone: To be honest with you, I haven’t thought too much about it. At the beginning of this, when it all came about that the band was ending, I started thinking – “Oh, wow, what am I gonna do next? What can I get myself into?” And then I just stopped myself. I was like – “You know what? We have a year left of touring. I’m just gonna focus on that. I’m not gonna stress myself out.” So I haven’t really sat down and thought about what I’m gonna do come February 1st. I think it was the best way to do it for me because I don’t wanna stress myself out. I just wanna enjoy the rest of the ride. And then, when the band ends, I’ll probably take some time off and hang out with my family for a bit, and then get into something. Probably musical, though. (laughs) Probably something in music again, whether it’s producing other bands, continuing with my radio show, writing songs for the other bands, or playing in another band. Who knows? It’s exciting because the sky’s the limit and there’s no plan. And I think that’s the best plan for me.
Follow Sum 41:
Website: sum41.com
Instagram: instagram.com/sum41
Facebook: facebook.com/Sum41
*Interview edited for length and clarity