Does This Look Infected?

Does This Look Infected?
Studio album by
Sum 41
ReleasedNovember 26, 2002 (2002-11-26)
Recorded2002
StudioAvatar, New York City and Metalworks Studios in Mississauga, Ontario
Genre
Length
  • 31:06
  • 39:18 (United Kingdom Edition)
Label
ProducerGreig Nori
Sum 41 chronology
All Killer No Filler
(2001) 		Does This Look Infected?
(2002) 		Chuck
(2004)
Singles from Does This Look Infected?
  1. "Still Waiting"
    Released: November 18, 2002
  2. "The Hell Song"
    Released: February 18, 2003
  3. "Over My Head (Better Off Dead)"
    Released: June 23, 2003

Does This Look Infected? is the second studio album by Canadian rock band Sum 41. It was released on November 26, 2002.

Music, lyrics and composition

The album is a lot more aggressive, darker and heavier than Sum 41's previous studio album, All Killer No Filler (2001).[1][2][3] It also has fewer elements of pop music than All Killer No Filler.[1] Described as heavy metal,[4] horror punk,[5] punk rock,[6][7][8][9][3] pop punk,[10][11][5][12] and melodic hardcore,[5] the album uses elements of heavy metal,[7][13][8][14][5][12][15] hardcore punk,[3] thrash metal,[5][13] d-beat[5] and, on the song "Thanks for Nothing",[3] hip hop.[15] Although the album has been described as pop punk by some sources, Counterculture.co.uk considered it an album that shows Sum 41 abandoning the pop punk genre for a more standard punk rock style.[7] Amy Sciarretto of ARTISTdirect wrote that Does This Look Infected? soldifies Sum 41 as "true punk stalwarts".[16] The music on Does This Look Infected? has been compared to bands such as The Offspring, P.O.D., Metallica, Rancid, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Bad Religion, NOFX, Green Day and Blink-182.[7][13][8][17][18][5]

The album's lyrical topics are darker than the lyrical topics on All Killer No Filler.[19] Sum 41's vocalist/rhythm guitarist Deryck Whibley said, "A lot of stuff happened in the past year that opened our eyes to new things," Whibley said. "The whole last year has been really crazy around the world. There's been so much stuff going on and it's been so televised. I think we've all become more aware. When we were writing the last record everything was happy go lucky. Now this time we've seen a little bit more and our eyes have been opened up a little bit."[10] The album's lyrical topics include hatred, war, internal demons, disliking the world, suicide, drugs, insomnia and HIV.[10][20][19][12][21] The song "Mr. Amsterdam" is about an embittered man. Whibley said, "'Mr. Amsterdam' is sort of about a guy who hates everything, very bitter person who kind of hates the world." He explains, "He's against the world."[17] The song is also about the complacency of pop culture in 2002, the year that Does This Look Infected? was released, and technology that was new during the year that the album was released.[10] Whibley explained the meaning of "Mr. Amsterdam", saying, "We depend so much on new technology to make sure that we don't have to do anything. Everything's being laid out so we can sit at home and do nothing and never leave our homes. You can order all your groceries from the computer. You can do anything you want. You can just sit there and become fatter. And I think that's bad."[10]

Lead guitarist Dave "Brownsound" Baksh explained the meaning of the song "All Messed Up", saying, "There's a song called 'All Messed Up,' which is about doing drugs . . . just what we feel when we're on drugs."[20] When Whibley spoke about "All Messed Up", he said, "It's about those kinds of nights. It's just about being really messed up and in that whole cracked-out kind of state."[10] "The Hell Song" is about a friend of Sum 41 who contracted HIV. Whibley spoke about "The Hell Song" saying, "It’s one of my favorite songs on the record. It's about this girl I used to date who I've known forever. Just last Christmas she found that she was HIV positive, and it was so brutal. She doesn't sleep around. She's only had two or three boyfriends and one of them used to cheat on her all the time, and then he got it and gave it to her. It's the heaviest thing that's happened in our group of friends."[10] "No Brains" is about a former band member of Sum 41. Whibley explained the song's meaning, saying, "That's just a basic 'fuck you, I'm done' kind of song. This guy was our old singer and I was best friends with him. We had this big falling out."[10] Whibley explained what the song "Over My Head (Better Off Dead)" is about. He said, "It's not about being fucked up or drunk. It's more about the aftermath when you're hearing everything you've just done the night before, and you're like, "Ah, fuck, I'm better off dead." I don't regret any of the things I do and I don't mind doing them, I just hate hearing about it. Being told every morning, "Dude, what did you do last night?" drives me nuts."[10]

"Still Waiting" was written after the September 11 attacks.[10] Whibley explained the meaning of the song, saying, "It's not directly about 9/11 or the war on terrorism. It's about the war on everything. It's about the world as we know it. It's no secret that the world doesn't get along and there's all this hatred. It's everything to do with how this world functions."[10] Whibley stated on the band's DVD, Sake Bombs And Happy Endings, that the album's song "A.N.I.C." is a "special love song" dedicated to Anna Nicole Smith. According to him, "A.N.I.C." stands for 'Anna Nicole is a Cunt'." Lead guitarist Dave "Brownsound" Baksh said that Anna Nicole Smith is "a fuckin' loser" and also said, "Look what she's doing to herself."[20] Sum 41 stopped including the song in their live performances after Smith died of an overdose in 2007.[22] However, they put "A.N.I.C." back into their setlist during the 2012 summer European leg of the Screaming Bloody Murder Tour. When Sum 41 performed the song live after Smith's death, the band would not show any disrespect towards her, with Whibley saying that the song "A.N.I.C." stands for "Deryck Whibley is a Fucking Stupid Cunt". However, since 2018, Whibley has resumed using Anna Nicole's name in the title.

Cover and title

The cover for Does This Look Infected? shows drummer Steve Jocz dressed as a zombie. It was chosen months before the title. The album's release was almost delayed because the band members did not have a name for it on time until Whibley thought of the name Does This Look Infected?. The whole band laughed at the idea and chose it. The same idea was also used on the band's EP Does This Look Infected Too?, except Jocz was replaced with Whibley, also dressed as a zombie.

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic75/100[23]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[24]
Blender[25]
Entertainment Weekly(B-)[3]
NME7/10[12]
Playlouder[26]
Rolling Stone[15]
Sputnikmusic[27]

Critical reception

Does This Look Infected? has received mostly positive reviews from music critics. On Metacritic, the album has 75 out of 100. E! Online said that it "has a clutch of songs that mix chord-y abandon with raging rock riffs--and a heck of a lot of good times". Blender also gave it a positive review, saying, "So Sum 41 have grown up... a little.... It's all relative, and, crucially, it still rocks."

Commercial performance

Does This Look Infected? debuted at #8 on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 17,000 copies in Canada in its first week.[28] The album gained commercial success, with singles "The Hell Song" and "Still Waiting" mainly gaining success on the modern rock charts. The album has since sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide, but the album did not have as much success as the band's previous album "All Killer No Filler".

Legacy

The album was included at number 28 on Rock Sound's "The 51 Most Essential Pop Punk Albums of All Time" list.[29] The band toured to celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2012, and its 15th anniversary in 2018, playing the album in its entirety. Whibley himself stated he was not satisfied with how the album was mixed, stating "I’ve always, always hated the way this album sounds. I hated it in the studio and it still bothers me. The demo I made myself at home sounded better than the final mix."[30]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The Hell Song"
3:18
2."Over My Head (Better Off Dead)"
2:29
3."My Direction"
2:03
4."Still Waiting"
  • Whibley
2:39
5."A.N.I.C."
  • Whibley
0:38
6."No Brains"
  • Whibley
  • Jocz
  • Baksh
2:46
7."All Messed Up"
  • Whibley
  • Baksh
2:45
8."Mr. Amsterdam"
  • Whibley
2:56
9."Thanks for Nothing"
  • Whibley
  • Jocz
3:04
10."Hyper-Insomnia-Para-Condrioid"
  • Whibley
  • Jocz
  • Baksh
2:33
11."Billy Spleen"
2:33
12."Hooch"
  • Whibley
  • Jocz
  • Baksh
  • McCaslin
3:28
Total length:31:06
UK and SRC Vinyl bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Reign in Pain (Heavy Metal Jamboree)" (vinyl pressing is listed as "Reign in Pain")
  • Jocz
  • Baksh
2:55
14."WWVII Parts 1 & 2" (vinyl pressing is listed as "WWVII Part II")
  • Jocz
  • Baksh
5:09
Total length:39:18
Does This Look Infected Too? – Japanese tour edition bonus disc
No.TitleLength
1."Mr. Amsterdam" (live in Brussels)3:54
2."Over My Head (Better Off Dead)" (live in Brussels)2:56
3."No Brains" (live in Brussels)4:08
4."The Hell Song" (live in Brussels)3:08
5."Still Waiting" (live in Brussels)3:16
Total length:17:22

Bonus DVD

The unedited version includes a bonus DVD which is entitled Cross The T's and Gouge Your I's. The DVD has footage of Sum 41's alter ego band, Pain for Pleasure, titled "Reign In Pain", as well as various humorous segments like "Going Going Gonorrhea", "Campus Invasion" and "Pizza Heist and Other Crap". Also included in the DVD are the Pain for Pleasure tracks "Reign In Pain" and "WWVII Parts 1 & 2", the Autopilot Off songs "Long Way to Fall" and "Nothing Frequency", the No Warning songs "Short Fuse" and "Ill Blood", and some web-links.

Personnel

Sum 41

  • Deryck Whibley – lead vocals, rhythm guitar; drums on "Reign in Pain (Heavy Metal Jamboree)" and "WWVII Parts 1 & 2"
  • Dave "Brownsound" Baksh – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Jason "Cone" McCaslin – bass guitar
  • Steve Jocz – drums; lead vocals on "Reign in Pain (Heavy Metal Jamboree)" and "WWVII Parts 1 & 2"; rapping on "Thanks for Nothing"

Production

  • Greig Nori – producer
  • Ben Sanders – additional vocal recording assistant
  • Ian Bodzasi – assistant engineer
  • Steve Chawley – assistant engineer
  • Chris Gordon – assistant engineer, additional engineer
  • Brian Montgomery – assistant engineer
  • Ross Petersen – assistant engineer
  • Anthony Ruotolo – assistant engineer
  • Owen Tamplin – assistant engineer
  • Phil Wakeford – assistant engineer
  • Josh Wilbur – Pro Tools engineer
  • Ed Krautner – engineer, additional engineering and mixing
  • Femio Hernandez – additional engineer
  • Joel Kazmi – additional engineer
  • L. Stuart Young – additional engineer
  • Dan Moyse – drum technician
  • Artie Smith – guitar technician
  • Tony Vanias – recording administration
  • Andy Wallace – mixing
  • Steve Sisco – mixing assistant
  • Tom Lord-Alge– mixing on "The Hell Song"
  • Howie Weinberg – mastering at Masterdisk, New York City
  • Bernadette Walsh – production coordinator
  • Lewis Largent – A&R
  • Rob Mitchell – A&R, A&R administration
  • Robert Stevenson – A&R
  • Morning Breath – album design[31]
  • Jonathan Mannion – photography

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for Does This Look Infected?
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[51] Platinum 100,000^
France (SNEP)[52] Gold 100,000*
Japan (RIAJ)[53] Platinum 200,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[56] Gold 613,000[55]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

Citations
  1. ^ a b "To Sum it up, band likes to keep it light". Jacksonville.com. February 21, 2003.
  2. ^ Stuart Green (February 1, 2003). "Sum 41 Does This Look Infected?". Exclaim.ca.
  3. ^ a b c d e Sinclair, Tom (November 29, 2002). "Does This Look Infected? Review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  4. ^ "Chuck". Rolling Stone.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g "All Messed Up: A Look Back At Sum 41's 'Does This Look Infected?'". The Carouser. Archived from the original on July 16, 2015.
  6. ^ "Sum 41 - Does This Look Infected?". Entertainment.ie. December 10, 2002.
  7. ^ a b c d Rowan Shaeffer. "Sum 41 : Does This Look Infected?". Counterculture.co.uk.
  8. ^ a b c Webster, Cody (December 23, 2002). "Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected? Review". 411MANIA. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015.
  9. ^ John Robb. "Does This Look Infected? by Sum 41". Playlouder. Archived from the original on November 23, 2002.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Wiederhorn, Jon (November 14, 2002). "Sum 41 Sober Up On Does This Look Infected?". MTV. Archived from the original on December 24, 2015.
  11. ^ Andrew Blackie (August 21, 2007). "Sum 41: Underclass Hero". PopMatters.
  12. ^ a b c d "Sum 41: Does This Look Infected?". NME. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
  13. ^ a b c Graham 'Gruhamed' Hartmann (November 16, 2012). "Sum 41 Celebrate 10th Anniversary of 'Does This Look Infected?' With Nostalgic NYC Show". Loudwire.
  14. ^ "Sum 41 "Does This Look Infected?"". E! Online. Archived from the original on December 16, 2002.
  15. ^ a b c Kelefa Sanneh. "Sum 41 Does This Look Infected?". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved July 29, 2017. (RS 911 – December 12, 2002)
  16. ^ Amy Sciarretto (November 5, 2012). "Sum 41 Tour "Does This Look Infected?" 10th Anniversary Tour Update". ARTISTdirect.
  17. ^ a b D'Angelo, Joe. "Sum 41: Testing Their Metal (Part 2)". MTV. Archived from the original on April 8, 2008.
  18. ^ Erwin, Ben (December 13, 2002). "Sum 41's latest more than warmed-over 'Dookie'". The Daily Eastern News.
  19. ^ a b Chris Heath. "'Does This Look Infected?'". Dotmusic. Archived from the original on December 24, 2003.
  20. ^ a b c Karen Bliss (October 3, 2002). "Sum 41 Get Infected". Rolling Stone.
  21. ^ "Hell Song by Sum 41 Songfacts". Songfacts.com. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  22. ^ "A.N.I.C by Sum 41". Songfacts. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  23. ^ "Does This Look Infected? Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
  24. ^ "Does This Look Infected? - Sum 41 - Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  25. ^ Mitchell, Ben. "Sum 41 Does This Look Infected?". Blender. Archived from the original on August 13, 2004. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  26. ^ Robb, John. "Sum 41 Does This Look Infected?". Playlouder. Archived from the original on December 8, 2002. Retrieved January 29, 2002.
  27. ^ "Sum 41 - Does This Look Infected? (album review 2)". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  28. ^ "Shania's 'Up!' sales go down". December 4, 2002. Archived from the original on October 31, 2004. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  29. ^ Bird, ed. 2014, p. 71
  30. ^ Masley, Ed. "Sum 41's Deryck Whibley looks back on 'Does This Look Infected?' in advance of anniversary tour". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  31. ^ "HOME". Morning Breath INC. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  32. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 271.
  33. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  34. ^ "Ultratop.be – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  35. ^ "Ultratop.be – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  36. ^ "Sum 41 Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  37. ^ "Lescharts.com – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  38. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  39. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Sum 41". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  40. ^ "Italiancharts.com – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  41. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  42. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  43. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  44. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  45. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart". Official Charts Company. December 1, 2002. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  46. ^ "Sum 41 Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  47. ^ "Top 200 Albums of 2002 (based on sales)". Jam!. Archived from the original on August 12, 2004. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
  48. ^ "Canada's Top 200 Alternative albums of 2002". Jam!. Archived from the original on December 4, 2003. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
  49. ^ "UK Year-End Charts 2002" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  50. ^ "Year-End Charts: Top Billboard 200 Albums (2003)". Billboard. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  51. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?". Music Canada. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  52. ^ "French album certifications – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved August 29, 2022. Select SUM 41 and click OK. 
  53. ^ "Japanese album certifications – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved August 29, 2022. Select 2003年3月 on the drop-down menu
  54. ^ "British album certifications – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  55. ^ "Intense Congo Trip Inspires Sum 41's 'Chuck'". Billboard. August 19, 2004. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  56. ^ "American album certifications – Sum 41 – Does This Look Infected?". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
Sources
  • Bird, Ryan, ed. (September 2014). "The 51 Most Essential Pop Punk Albums of All Time". Rock Sound (191). London: Freeway Press Inc. ISSN 1465-0185.