It would be a mistake to view
Sum 41 as just another second-rate band cashing in on the early-'00s
punk-pop boom, even if it did recruit
Jerry Finn to produce
All Killer No Filler. Just as
Finn had done for both
blink-182 and
Green Day, he charges
Sum 41's
punk-pop with a razor-sharp edge, the sort of dynamic in-your-face sound that helps this music cross over to
MTV and radio so well. Besides the notable production, a lot of credit should go to the band as well. Its songwriting is obviously more diverse here than it was a year earlier on its debut album,
Half Hour of Power; for example, the group's
rap and '80s
metal influences rise to the surface more frequently here than on that first album and instill a fun sense of camp.
"Fatlip" is perhaps the best example of how
Sum 41 has made an effort to diversify the music with more than just power chords and melodic
punk vocals. Judging from this album,
Sum 41 still isn't quite on the same level as
alt-rock peers such as
Weezer or
Green Day, but the band is obviously headed in the right direction. In the meantime, it's difficult not to enjoy this album for what it is, even if it's a bit derivative. ~ Jason Birchmeier
