Winding up a rock band is never easy, but for members of Sum 41, the experience has been an odd mixture of confusion, camaraderie and ultimately acceptance.

It started two years ago with a surprise email from the band91裸聊视频檚 leader Deryck Whibley, who91裸聊视频檚 also their main songwriter. He told them, that after many years of anxious contemplation, he had finally decided to pull the plug on the band.

91裸聊视频淚 was shocked,91裸聊视频� recalled bassist Jason McCaslin. 91裸聊视频淐ompletely shocked.91裸聊视频�

91裸聊视频淚n my mind, I guess I thought we91裸聊视频檇 never end.91裸聊视频�

Sitting alongside guitarist Dave Baksh in a Toronto record label office, the two musicians are reflecting on life without Whibley in their immediate orbit and how within a blink everything is about to end.

Sum 41 plays one final concert at Toronto91裸聊视频檚 Scotiabank Arena on Thursday. Then in March, they91裸聊视频檒l be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at the Juno Awards, a recognition of the Ajax, Ont. band91裸聊视频檚 enduring impact with hits that include 91裸聊视频淔at Lip,91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频淪till Waiting91裸聊视频� and 91裸聊视频淚n Too Deep.91裸聊视频�

After that, Sum 41 will cease to exist.

91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 the complete worst; it91裸聊视频檚 the complete best. It91裸聊视频檚 everything in between,91裸聊视频� said Baksh of playing the last shows. 91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 a feeling I don91裸聊视频檛 think I91裸聊视频檝e ever had. So I have no descriptive for it.91裸聊视频�

Missing from this discussion is Whibley who, unlike the band91裸聊视频檚 other two Ontario-based members, lives in Las Vegas and was unable to make it back to Canada for a run of press interviews in early January.

That left his two lifelong friends to pose for photos without their familiar frontman, an absence that casts an unintentional weight over the proceedings. In some ways, it feels as if Sum 41 has already closed the book even before their curtain call.

It91裸聊视频檚 taken a lot of emotional effort to get to a point where, as Baksh puts it, they91裸聊视频檝e come through the five stages of grief to arrive at acceptance. They recognize now that Whibley had to end Sum 41 for himself. There was no other option after his message landed.

91裸聊视频淚t was this very nicely worded email that explained his position,91裸聊视频� Baksh said. 91裸聊视频淵ou immediately go into a mode where it91裸聊视频檚 like, 91裸聊视频極K, this person needs it. What can we do to help this happen?91裸聊视频�

Despite the odds, Sum 41 lasted longer than many critics expected.

Whibley and his band mates burned bright and loud during the pop-punk heyday of the early aughts. They partied hard, rebelled against whatever stood in their way, and established themselves as one of the bratty forces of teen angst for a generation.

In his 20s, Whibley became tabloid fodder. He married and divorced Canadian pop princess Avril Lavigne, had a fling with Paris Hilton and was caught in many an unflattering photo by the paparazzi outside trendy Los Angeles clubs.

It all came crashing down in 2014 when alcoholism sent Whibley over the edge. He was hospitalized in a coma with severe damage to his liver and kidneys that nearly killed him.

In the years that followed, he underwent a major life reset that saw him pursue sobriety and settle down. But as he describes it, not everything changed.

Outside his control, the music industry machine continued to whir, and with it came heavy expectations.

Sum 41 would spend the better part of each year on tour, after which Whibley would hunker down in the studio for six or eight months to write a new album. Once it was finished, he91裸聊视频檇 be spit back onto the touring circuit to promote it.

While that repetition had always been part of his lifestyle, he found it harder to enjoy in the years after his recovery. Internal voices of discontent became increasingly louder and so he buried them as best he could in his work.

91裸聊视频淚 would crush (them) and say, 91裸聊视频楽top thinking like that. This is what you do. You love being in Sum 4191裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频� which I do,91裸聊视频� the 44-year-old explained over a video call from a hotel room in Winnipeg while on tour.

91裸聊视频淏ut I couldn91裸聊视频檛 help but think this is all I91裸聊视频檝e ever done.91裸聊视频�

Whibley said his emotions came to a head near the start of the COVID-19 pandemic as he grappled with signs of burnout. The sudden pause of concerts allowed him to contemplate his priorities as he welcomed a baby boy, the first with his wife.

Once the industry got back into motion he was on the road again.

It wasn91裸聊视频檛 until Whibley put the finishing touches on Sum 4191裸聊视频檚 ambitious double album 91裸聊视频淗eaven :x: Hell91裸聊视频� that he started to see everything clearer. The project captured both the pop-punk and heavy metal sounds that defined his band91裸聊视频檚 evolution, and he was satisfied with how it turned out.

91裸聊视频淲hat else would I do after this?91裸聊视频� he remembers thinking. 91裸聊视频淚t encapsulates Sum 41 perfectly 91裸聊视频� and that91裸聊视频檚 when it hit me, I think I91裸聊视频檓 ready for something different.91裸聊视频�

At least six months passed before Whibley finally shared his decision with the band in early 2023. It arrived to them in an email that he says he titled 91裸聊视频淚91裸聊视频檓 Afraid It91裸聊视频檚 Come to This.91裸聊视频�

91裸聊视频淚91裸聊视频檓 not as excited about it as I once was,91裸聊视频� he summarized. 91裸聊视频淎nd I don91裸聊视频檛 want to do it just because it91裸聊视频檚 a great paycheque.91裸聊视频�

Whibley, who91裸聊视频檚 now father to a daughter as well, asked his band mates to digest his message and not act on their immediate emotions. He suggested they each hop on a phone call after the news settled in.

91裸聊视频淚 know the guys so well, I know how we operate, and I know how I would want something like that to be delivered to me,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淚 wanted to give everybody the respect, time and the space to absorb it.91裸聊视频�

Whibley eventually made those promised phone calls, which his band mates say helped smooth over their raw emotions and consider Whibley91裸聊视频檚 experience.

91裸聊视频淭o put it in perspective 91裸聊视频� he hadn91裸聊视频檛 ever taken time off for himself,91裸聊视频� Baksh said. 91裸聊视频淥ne day he told me, 91裸聊视频業91裸聊视频檝e never been on vacation.91裸聊视频� I was like, you should do that.91裸聊视频�

Of course, Whibley91裸聊视频檚 decision didn91裸聊视频檛 just affect the band 91裸聊视频� it sent ripples through every corner of their business, which kicked into high gear.

Sum 41 immediately hopped on a tour with the Offspring, released their final album in early 2024 and then kicked off their massive Tour of the Setting Sum farewell run, which has been going ever since.

Last year, Whibley released an explosive memoir that chronicled his tumultuous experiences as a scrappy young rock star, including allegations of misconduct against the band91裸聊视频檚 former manager, which he has denied. The two have escalated the dispute to a potential courtroom showdown.

All of the renewed attention on Sum 4191裸聊视频檚 final shows has left most of the band a little shell-shocked, yet Whibley sounds as if he couldn91裸聊视频檛 be happier about seeing the finish line.

91裸聊视频淚t doesn91裸聊视频檛 really feel sad or scary,91裸聊视频� he says. 91裸聊视频淚 don91裸聊视频檛 feel anxious.91裸聊视频�

Instead, he is looking forward to a simpler life. He said he doesn91裸聊视频檛 have any big plans, for now.

91裸聊视频淚 wouldn91裸聊视频檛 mind just being at home for a while. That sounds like vacation to me,91裸聊视频� he added.

91裸聊视频淛ust, like, waking up in my own bed.91裸聊视频�