Back in October, when Sum 41 announced their European tour, I couldn't believe my eyes. Seeing "Helsinki, Finland" on their tour schedule got me jumping around in excitement, I was so happy! Their first appearance here since 2010!
But Sum 41 was about to spend 9 weeks and have 42 shows in Europe. The show in Helsinki, Finland was the show #41 on the 9th week, so I knew I wouldn't be able to resist visiting other shows before that.
My original plan was to attend some shows in Spain, Portugal and/or Italy. Unfortunately I got a pretty severe flu right before the tour started, so I had to skip those plans. The next possible location for me was Prague, Czech Republic in the beginning of February, which you can read all about in this other thread.
LONDON, UK
My first Sum 41 show ever was at Brixton Academy in London, UK in 2008. After seeing that they were about to play Brixton again, I figured it would be cool to visit the place where it all started for me. And I realized it would be my Sum 41 show #20, so it would be the perfect place to celebrate that achievement.
Only 2 days before the show I noticed that the Sums were about to play a secret show in London the day before Brixton. I was so pissed that I didn't know about it earlier, since I would've been able to be there. Too bad I had already booked flights for a day too late. And after hearing they played songs like 88 and What I Believe there, damn!
The day I was about to leave to London, I got a bit sick. Still, I wasn't too sick to travel, so I made it to the show, but I wasn't feeling too well to make my way to the front row, my usual spot to watch the show. Instead, I figured this would be a good opportunity to see the Sum 41 all the way from the back for the first time for me. And boy, it's a whole different world back there!
Hollerado was good, they are possibly the best supporting act I've seen at shows, so they were the best choice for me to open for Sum 41 on this tour. You should really see them live if you get the chance!
So, I was ready to see the Sum 41 from a totally different point of view. And hit me right from the start! The lightning show during the Murder Of Crows intro was spectacular, and I realized that there are a lot of thought put into the light show as well. I just never thought about it, since you can't really see it clearly when you're at the front. But now that I got to see the light show, it really gave a whole new depth to the show. Throughout the show the light show was amazing, and the sound was perfect! If you're a front row guy like me, I really recommend you to see a show from the back at least once. It's a whole new experience and gives you more appreciation for the show.
That being said, I'm still a front row guy after this. While the sound and the view were amazing, there was a big part missing. To me, feeling the crowd around me is almost as important as the band's performance itself, so not being able to dance and jump with the crowd left me feel a bit empty. During a song like God Save Us All, I really felt like jumping along, but the crowd around me at the back were mostly standing still, so it would've felt a bit awkward to jump all by myself. Luckily though, I got to be right next to Deryck when he came to the back to sing Makes No Difference and With Me. That arrangement is so cool!
Right before Sum 41's set, I randomly bumped in to Lex aka drummerlikestevo, one of the old time TNSers from back in the day. It was cool to hang out with her, along with some new friends that I made that night. Meeting other Skumfuks at my travels is one reason I enjoy to see these shows abroad.
The Setlist
- Spoiler: show
I sent a message to Tom, saying that they NEED to play those two songs when they come to Helsinki. But I couldn't count on that Tom would read my message in time, not to mention grant my requests, so I decided I wanted to see them once more to be sure to catch those songs live.
STOCKHOLM, SWE
This time, it was time to go back to the front row, no question about it. Hollerado was super again. As was Sum 41. One of the highlights was The Hell Song. Dave's guitar started acting up, so Deryck gave him his guitar. They nailed it nonetheless. During the bridge, Deryck was looking at the people at the front row, pointing at them like he was trying to find someone. Rather quickly he pointed at me, saying "There you are! I knew you'd be here motherfucker!" I was so blown away! How could he "know" I'd be there, since I didn't know about it myself until the day before. Not to mention he'd find me from the crowd!
That started our little bromance that lasted throughout the show. He pointed at me when introducing Makes No Difference as "This is for the old school Sum 41 fans". Even more awesome was when they finished With Me and Deryck was coming back from the B-stage, they started to play something I wasn't familiar with. But when Deryck came back to stage, he said "This next song's called The Fall & The Rise", whichafter he pointed at me. So I guess he got my request. And boy that song sounds perfect live! Really got me jumping!
I say this after almost every show, but this was the best show I've attended! For me, the energy was so great, the setlist was perfect, really loved it!
The Setlist
- Spoiler: show
After arriving at the Helsinki airport, the guys went to wait for their luggage. I didn't have to pick any, so I just passed them quickly wishing them a nice day off. Frank asked me to wait though, saying "Deryck wanted to give you this", and handed me the setlist of the show signed by Deryck. Damn, that was cool of him. But that made me think, maybe he thought that Stockholm was my hometown show, after all that special attention I got from him. Well, I didn't mind being a Swede for a night, though.
HELSINKI, FIN
Hometown show, baby! This time I bought the VIP, to be able to get some album covers signed, especially from Dave. I had also planned to take a picture with them, but for some reason I totally forgot about it when I was chatting with them. Bummer! My last picture with them is from 2012, so I guess I have to hope there's a chance next time around.
For some strange reason, I felt really stressed about the show. I was really hoping that everything goes well at the show, that both the band and the crowd would be having a great time. While it's not my responsibility to ensure that everything goes well, somehow I still felt like it. So it was hard for me to get relaxed before the show, and while I had a bunch of froends and family at the show, I was too nervous to enjoy my time with them. It was cool to meet some old and new friends (like fellow TNSers patentti and X^2), as much as I could stand still and talk with people.
But soon I noticed that I was worrying for nothing. The crowd really started dancing during Hollerado's set, which was the first time for the crowd to do so on this tour. The crowd really enjoyed them, and vice versa. Thanks to Menno the singer for a shoutout ("Give it up to mr. Sum 41 Finland"). After Hollerado finished, the crowd kept chanting "We want more", which is the first time ever I've heard a supporting band get such appreciation.
Then it was Sum 41's turn. While the show started well, for me it was about to become a nightmare. The crowd was the most aggressive I've ever been, the amount of severly drunk people was very high. During Over My Head, a huge drunk guy wanted to make his way to the front row. He tried to get past me, but I refused to give him any room, so he decided to punch me in the face. Luckily I got to punch him back before the crowd got between us. I got scared that I had to leave the show early, but luckily it wasn't that bad. Though for the rest of the show I couldn't see clearly with my other eye, so that made me enjoy the show a little less than usual. But I got my first black eye, so I guess that was something to look back on.
The setlist was the same as in Stockholm, excluding the piano parts. I guess since it was a small club, they didn't feel like bringing the piano up on stage, so they played Pieces without it. After the show, the band crew gave me the basketball hoop Deryck had been using for warming up as a gift.
The Setlist
- Spoiler: show