Chuck is the third studio album by Canadian rock band Sum 41. The album was released on October 12, 2004. It was the last album to feature guitarist Dave Baksh before his departure from Sum 41 on May 11, 2006. Baksh later rejoined the band in 2015. Chuck peaked at No. 2 on the Canadian Albums Chart and No. 10 on the US Billboard 200, making it the band's highest-charting album until it would be surpassed by Underclass Hero in 2007.
The album's title is named after a volunteer UN peacekeeper named Chuck Pelletier who was in the Democratic Republic of the Congo where Sum 41 was filming a documentary for War Child Canada. Fighting broke out during production, and Pelletier helped the band evacuate their hotel during the fighting, as he was staying at the same hotel.
The album's lyrical content has been described as darker and more mature than the band's previous work. It also had a different sound, mixing punk rock and melodic hardcore with heavy metal. The album proved to be a success, receiving acclaim from both critics and fans, as well as selling over five million copies. Singles such as "We're All to Blame" and "Pieces" gained success on the Canadian and American charts, and the album won a Juno Award for "Rock Album of the Year" in 2005.
I was fully prepared to write this off as another lightly-fried numetal turd...
...but actually, it isn't. There's some decent variety in there, some thrashy, some speed, some classic 80s-ish power metal and overall it's varied enough to make me think it's actually worth a listen. Once.
The weaker tracks are the more "uplifting" melodic ones - thrashy works so much better for them.
Back to my teen-years! No doubt that this gets a 5-star rating from me.
There very energetic songs are just bangers. And the somewhat calmer 'power-ballads' just hit the right buttons
This holds up incredibly well. There is much more here than the pop punk they are known for. Metal leanings of this work amazingly and probably put this band at its peak with this album.
I’ve heard a little Sum 41 here and there, but hadn’t listened to an album. This seemed to have a little more of a hard metal edge to it but maintained good pop sensibilities. I have to say I like Green Day and some others in this vicinity more, but this is good.
Fun fact: I'm exactly the same age as Sum 41's bassist, which may explain why I always had a bit of a soft spot for them.
Definitely prefer them to the other bands of this era/genre, they're fun and likeable but also really good songwriters who know how to do punk without it becoming offensive or stupid.
More interesting than your typical pop-punk LP, but not wholly memorable either – just kinda blends into a midrange wall of noise after a while, without much memorable melodicism or personality to make a mark. Falls right at a 2.5 for me, going with a 3 as a heavier guitar-based album is always appreciated.
Pop-punk con alguna canción más intensa. Parece más orientado al público más juvenil. Algún riff de guitarra más elaborado. Intenso, pero sin ser puro punk. Si fuese más crudo y con más melodía, mejor nota hubiese sacado.
The early 00s was ruled by the numetal garage punk sound. Blink 182 was the main artist but Sum 41 had several songs that competed tightly with some of the best of the genre. There are a few on Chuck that are great energy forward rock songs. Much of this album is driven by strong guitar work and angst lyricism. It’s a solid nostalgic album if this was the sound of a younger life. Overall it’s pretty good. Sum 41 shows some range and one a one dimensional band trying to cash in on a sound. 7.3/10
It’s grimier pop-punk than their contemporaries and that’s meant in a complimentary light. I appreciated the back story behind how the album got its name. I’m trying hard not to call this the Canadian answer to Linkin Park but my favourite tracks (“We’re All to Blame”, “Angels With Dirty Faces”, “88”) make it difficult not to call it. Again, that’s a complimentary comment, even if it indicates derivation.
This is not my favorite Sum 41 album, but it's fine, I guess. Nothing new here, and I'd probably listen to another of their albums before this one, but I probably wouldn't turn it off, either.
Absolutely fucking insane album backstory, can't believe that's real.
Sum 41 get caught up in a warzone in the Democratic Republic of the Congo while filming a documentary, almost get shot, have to be rescued by the UN, decide to make their next album darker and more mature as a response.
I've only heard "Is This Infected?" before, and I think this is much better. I think the takeaway here is that we should send more pop punk bands to the Congo. Strong 3/5.
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