Music

Dave "Brownsound" Baksh's return to Sum 41 is a firm maybe

by Richard Howard

You may have heard an odd sound and simultaneously felt a slight disturbance in the force right around the same time the Alternative Press Music Awards ceremony was taking place in Cleveland, Ohio last Wednesday night. Well, let me solve the mystery: These phenomena were a result of hundreds of thousands of pop-punk fanatics soiling their BVDs as Dave “Brownsound” Baksh taking the stage with Sum 41 for the first time in a decade. (No, I will not make a brown note joke here. As you know, I’m better than that.)

For the first time after his harrowing near death experience, Sum 41 singer Deryck Whibley performed on July 3rd in Santa Ana, California at The Constellation Room. Being the only Sum member onstage, he decided to go under the moniker Deryck Whibley and the Happiness Machines. Fans didn’t have too long a wait for the return of Sum 41 proper, however, as original bassist Cone McCaslin soon reappeared (sadly, hilarious drummer Stevo remains MIA).

Whibley kept hinting there was more to come though, specifically during their APMA performance.

There sure was. While the band did rip a wicked cover of Run DMC’s “King of Rock” featuring DMC himself, the high point of was undoubtedly the unannounced return of Baksh, the band’s instantly recognizable original lead guitarist known for his face-melting solos that helped set Sum 41 apart from the slew of pop-punk bands in the early 2000s. Skip to 2:10 to check out his pro-sports-esque entry straight into possibly his most widely known solo.

While most of the crowd present is seen having a great time but not really batting an eye at The Return of The Brownsound (likely due to their median age looking to be about 16), Sum 41 fans around the world absolutely lost it.

Post-heart-attack, the question kept popping up – is Baksh back for good? The man himself posted an Instagram photo stating: “Yes yes y’all I’m back. Sum 41! Thanks to all of the crew, band and fans for making me feel so welcome.” That photo has since been deleted, leaving fans worriedly nibbling their Twizzlers and wondering what the real deal is. Well, after a little digging, we found a comment by Whibley on the topic and found out the answer is a stunning “I dunno.”

Oh well. Fact is, Whibley has always done the lion’s share of the band’s writing and producing, so conceivably he could get pretty far in the new album’s creation process and still bring Baksh onboard if it’s mutually decided to do so. Baksh, meanwhile, has been keeping busy right here in the GTA with his Pickering based The Gentleman’s Den recording studio along with his excellent bands Black Cat Attack and The Organ Thieves.

Still, it was stellar to see Sum 41 back together again. Hopefully they came offstage thinking the same thing we were: There’s something timeless about Iron Maiden inspired solos in a pop-punk setting. Especially when the guy ripping said solos is named after the mythical note that makes people unwillingly poop their pants.