Ok now we’re a week ahead, 18th June, Sum 41 show in Prague. I stand in the front of the whole queue and I realized, that something is wrong, because my name is not on the guest list. I try to contact Chuck by phone – no answer. Well. Luckily the show wasn’t completely sold out as it was moved to the bigger venue. So I bought a ticket, got settled with the fact that it didn’t work out, grabbed a beer, found a nice spot in the front and waited for the first band.
I’ll skip two of the Czech support bands and move to The Creepshow. I knew their show from the last week, enjoyed it the same as the last time – got excited when Kenda (The Creepshow singer) used Czech phrases that I learned her. As I said earlier, I was in the front row, and Kenda noticed me in the middle of the show and gave me a look and wave – turned out that was pretty important moment. After the end of their show, Kenda came to me to greet me so I tried to ask her if she could call Chuck to me. Chuck came, said he’s sorry that I wasn’t there that my name must’ve got lost and that he’s gonna make it up to me. In a moment he came with the backstage pass and suddenly I sit with the Creepshow at the table and we wait for the Sum 41 show.
First tones of the intro and I’m standing on the side of the stage next to Brownsound and Chuck gets me another beer (he was really thorough with keeping my beer flow going for the whole Sum 41 set). The Sums started with Motivation. Right with the first song I’ve noticed one thing. On the side of the stage the sound usually sucks. Everything goes to the crowd and you just hear noises from the stage. But not there, there was a small PA so we got nice clean sound throughout the whole show. Nice detail. In the middle of We’re All the Blame, Ariana comes to the side of the stage, greeted me and gave me Deryck’s guitar pick.
Then we got one premiere. For the first time, the band played A Death In The Family live and it sounds really great. Deryck said they tried it a few times during sound checks, otherwise they didn’t rehearse the song, but it sounded good, so they gave it a shot in Prague.
I’m used to the energetic shows that Sum 41 have, but this exceeded my expectations and all the other shows that I’ve attended. Reports from various Czech magazines supports this claim. Sum 41 are in the great form and it’s awesome.
So the show is over and I expect that after I’ve drank all the remaining beers in the Creepshow’s fridge (thanks to Chuck ) I’ll say goodbye and will go to the hotel. But Chuck gets me right back to the Creepshow’s backstage. Just like the last week we drank a bit and I’m going to the toilet. On the way I meet Deryck with Ariana and in the distance I see Tomi approaching (it’s his 30th Sum 41 show!). I say hi to Deryck, who is in really good mood, it was clear that he had the same great feeling about this show. I show him our photo from 2010 when I met Sum 41 for the first time. He and Ariana laughed about it, Ariana said this is exactly how Deryck looked when they’ve met.
(2010)
(2019)
After a while a group formed, there were other fans – TNS users, girls from Sum 41 Italia and Sue. Deryck promised that plans for the Order In Decline tour plans are forming as we speak and he hopes that Czech Republic will be one of the stops.
After a while, other Sum 41 members started to show up. I’ve had a chance to meet everybody except Frank, who wasn’t present in the backstage, maybe he was just tired so he may have been in the tour bus. With Tom I had to ask if another Gob album is in plans, he said he’d like to, but that he has no time, when he isn’t on tour with Sum 41, which is almost all the time, he tries to enjoy some time with his child, in addition his wife would like another one, so he expects that in 20 years the new album is out :)). Cone looked a bit tired but stopped by too and talked a bit. I think the most time I talked with Dave. As I play a guitar I had a lot of things to discuss with him. After all of the members left, Ariana was still present with us. She said she waits for 4 years for Deryck to take her to their honeymoon and one of the stops that she’d like to visit is Prague.
If the show would’ve been sold out, I’d stand behind the fence and listened to show from distance, but luckily everything turned out fine and I’ve had the greatest time.
edit. well fuck, pics don't work. They can be seen http://www.sum41.cz/extra-clanky-sum41-v-braniku.html
It does to me sometimes.