Underclass Hero

This article is about the album. For the song, see Underclass Hero (song).

Underclass Hero is the fourth studio album by Canadian rock band Sum 41. It is the first of two albums by the band recorded without guitarist Dave "Brownsound" Baksh since he left a year earlier to focus on Brown Brigade. It was first released on July 18, 2007, in Japan by Island Records and distributed worldwide by Aquarius Records, the band's final album on the label. In comparison to the heavy metal-inspired punk style of their previous album Chuck (2004), Underclass Hero marked a return to the band’s pop-punk sound.

Underclass Hero
Studio album by Sum 41
Released	July 18, 2007 (2007-07-18)
Recorded	November 6, 2006 – March 14, 2007
Studio	Ocean Way, Los Angeles, California; Sound City, Van Nuys, California; Sage & Sound, Hollywood, California
Genre	Pop punk emo pop
Length	51:49
Label	Aquarius Island
Producer	Deryck Whibley
Sum 41 chronology
Chuck (2004) Underclass Hero (2007) Screaming Bloody Murder (2011)
Singles from Underclass Hero
"Underclass Hero" Released: May 15, 2007 "Walking Disaster" Released: July 23, 2007 "With Me" Released: February 28, 2008

The album was a commercial success, peaking at number 1 on the Canadian Albums Chart and at number 7 on the US Billboard 200, becoming the band’s highest-charting album to date. It received generally mixed reviews from critics, with some praising its songwriting, lyrics and production, while others found it to be too long, melodramatic, and derivative.

Musical style

Critics have consistently described Underclass Hero as a revival of Sum 41's previous pop punk style in All Killer No Filler (2001) as opposed to the heavy metal and punk rock sound found in Chuck (2004).^[1][2][3][4] However, the album differentiates itself from the band's early sound, through the incorporation of instruments such as acoustic guitars, pianos, organs and synthesizers, theatricality, emphasis on dark and political lyrics, dynamics and its disregard for metal influences, creating a sound more inline with the emo pop genre. Furthermore, songs such as "Ma Poubelle" combine this with elements of show tunes. PopMatters writer Ethan Stewart stated that "The way that Underclass Hero layers pianos, acoustic guitars, vocal harmonies, and ambient synthesizers easily makes it Sum 41’s prettiest-sounding record to date."^[5]

Release

On April 16, 2007, Underclass Hero was announced for release. The next day, "March of the Dogs" was released as a promotional single.^[6] On May 2, 2007, the title track was posted on the band's Myspace profile; the music video for it was posted online at the end of the month.^[7][8] The album's artwork was posted online on June 8, 2007.^[9] On July 9, 2007, "Walking Disaster" was posted on Myspace.^[10] The album was made available for streaming on July 17, 2007 through MTV's website, and released through Island on July 24.^[6][11] On the same day, the band performed the album in its entirety, which was subsequently posted on their website.^[12] In August, the band played two shows in Australia with Yellowcard and performed at a few dates on the Warped Tour, alongside a few US shows with Yellowcard, Monty Are I and Amber Pacific the following month.^[13][14] On August 20, 2007, the music video for "Walking Disaster" premiered on MTV2's website.^[15] In September and October 2007, the band went on a tour of the US with Schoolyard Heroes, which included an appearance at the X96 Big Ass Show radio festival.^[16][17] In November 2007, the band announced that singer/rhythm guitarist Deryck Whibley was suffering from a herniated disc, resulting in all of the remaining shows of the year to be cancelled.^[18] In February and March 2008, the band toured the UK, which was followed by a stint in Canada; both were supported by Die Mannequin and Social Code.^[19] They toured Australia in April 2008 with Pennywise, the Vandals and Bowling for Soup.^[20]

Reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	50/100^[21]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[2]
BBC	(unfavorable)^[22]
Billboard	(favorable)^[23]
Entertainment Weekly	B^[24]
IGN	7.0/10^[25]
NME	4/10^[26]
Rolling Stone	^[27]
Robert Christgau	^[28]
Spin	^[29]
Sputnikmusic	^[30]

Critical reaction

Underclass Hero received praise for its songwriting and lyrical content, but received criticism for its similarities to Green Day's American Idiot and My Chemical Romance's The Black Parade.^[2] On review aggregator website Metacritic, the album currently holds an average score of 50/100 based on 12 reviews, indicating “mixed or average reviews”.

The A.V. Club gave the album a positive review, calling it "the band's smartest and most mature sounding album yet." Billboard also reacted positively, saying that "its growth feels genuine and, unlike Sum 41's punk peers, its musical maturation doesn't come at the expense of that all-important snotty 'tude." On the other hand, BBC was less favorable, saying that it "has its merits", but calling it a "disappointing effort". The Guardian, in a 1 star review, called the album "Green Day without the range and the charm".^[31]

Sputnikmusic gave the album a 1 out of 5, saying that it "tries its best to be profound and musically challenging, however its only success is found, without exception, in the tracks which drop the pretense entirely and return to the formula which made the group popular to begin with." IGN gave the album a 7 out of 10, drawing comparisons to Green Day regarding the album’s sound, but said that it’s “not a bad album”. Contactmusic.com said that the album was full of "mixed results". In 2018, Rock Sound ranked the album at #78 in their list of the Best 100 Pop Punk Albums.^[32]

Commercial performance

In Canada, Underclass Hero debuted at number 1 on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling just over 9,000 copies in its first week.^[33] In the United States, the album sold 44,601 copies in its first week and debuted at number 7 on the Billboard 200, making it their highest chart positioning to date in the U.S. As of April 2011, the album has sold 184,000 copies in the United States.^[34] As of 2013, it has sold over 1 million copies worldwide.

The album was led by the singles "Underclass Hero" and "Walking Disaster"; both achieving moderate radio success in 2007. The third single, "With Me", wasn't released as a single until 2008. Additionally, "March of the Dogs" was released as an album preview in April 2007 before its release, because the album "wouldn't be out until the summer".

Political backlash

The track "March of the Dogs" faced political backlash due to its radical opposition to then-United States President George W. Bush. This led to Whibley facing possible deportation in 2007 by a House of Representatives minority leader.^[35] However, this ultimately never came to pass.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Deryck Whibley, except where noted.

Standard edition

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Underclass Hero" (Whibley, Steve Jocz)	3:14
2.	"Walking Disaster"	4:46
3.	"Speak of the Devil"	3:58
4.	"Dear Father"	3:52
5.	"Count Your Last Blessings"	3:03
6.	"Ma Poubelle" (Whibley, Jocz)	0:55
7.	"March of the Dogs"	3:09
8.	"The Jester"	2:48
9.	"With Me"	4:51
10.	"Pull the Curtain"	4:18
11.	"King of Contradiction"	1:40
12.	"Best of Me"	4:25
13.	"Confusion and Frustration in Modern Times"	3:46
14.	"So Long Goodbye"	3:01
Total length:		47:49

Hidden track (not available on all editions)

No.	Title	Length
15.	"Look at Me" (starts at 2:00)	4:03
Total length:		51:52

iTunes bonus track

No.	Title	Length
15.	"Take a Look at Yourself"	3:24
Total length:		51:13

International bonus track

No.	Title	Length
15.	"No Apologies"	2:58
Total length:		50:47

Japanese bonus track

No.	Title	Length
16.	"This Is Goodbye"	2:26
Total length:		53:13

Personnel

Sum 41

• Deryck Whibley – lead & backing vocals, guitars, keyboards, piano, producer
• Jason "Cone" McCaslin – bass, backing vocals
• Steve Jocz – drums

Additional musicians

• Jamie Muhoberac – keyboards
• Dan Chase – percussion
• Michael Railton – piano

Technical

• Doug McKean – engineer
• Keith Armstrong – assistant engineer
• Adam Fuller – assistant engineer
• Nathan Johns – assistant engineer
• Nik Karpen – assistant engineer
• Wesley Seidman – assistant engineer
• David Campbell – string arrangement
• Chris Lord-Alge – mixing
• Ted Jensen – mastering

Artwork

• Tara Podolsky – A&R
• Rob "Just Fine" Stevenson – A&R
• Jonathan Mannion – cover photo
• Patrick Hegarty – cover design
• Brian Lauzon – package design, photography
• Matt Taylor – package design, photography

Release history

Region	Date
Japan	July 18, 2007
Canada/Europe	July 23, 2007
United States	July 24, 2007

Charts and certifications

Charts Chart (2007) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)^[36] 22 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)^[37] 8 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)^[38] 85 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)^[39] 72 Canadian Albums (Billboard)^[40] 1 French Albums (SNEP)^[41] 17 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[42] 10 Irish Albums (IRMA)^[43] 66 Italian Albums (FIMI)^[44] 34 Japanese Albums Chart (Oricon)^[45] 2 Scottish Albums (OCC)^[46] 57 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)^[47] 9 UK Albums (OCC)^[48] 46 US Billboard 200^[49] 7 US Alternative Albums (Billboard)^[50] 1 US Digital Albums (Billboard)^[citation needed] 7 US Rock Albums (Billboard)^[51] 1 US Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)^[52] 10 Certifications Country Certification Sales Canada Platinum^[53] 100,000 Units+ Japan Gold^[54] 200,000 Units+

References

1. "Sum 41 - Underclass Hero - Reviews - Killyourstereo.com". Killyourstereo.com. September 7, 2007. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
2. https://www.allmusic.com/album/r1074163
3. "Sum 41 - Underclass Hero (album review 4) - Sputnikmusic". Retrieved September 9, 2015.
4. "Sum 41". PopMatters. 21 August 2007. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
5. Stewart, Ethan. "RANKING THE SUM 41 ALBUMS: FROM POP-PUNK TO THRASH METAL". PopMatters. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
6. "New Sum 41 album gets title, release date". Alternative Press. April 16, 2007. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
7. Paul, Aubin (May 2, 2007). "Sum 41: 'Underclass Hero'". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
8. Paul, Aubin (May 29, 2007). "Sum 41: 'Underclass Hero'". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
9. Paul, Aubin (June 8, 2007). "Sum 41 posts art for 'Underclass Hero'". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
10. Paul, Aubin (July 9, 2007). "Sum 41: 'Walking Disaster'". Punknews.org. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
11. Paul, Aubin (July 17, 2007). "Sum 41: 'Underclass Hero'". Punknews.org. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
12. Paul, Aubin (July 24, 2007). "Sum 41 performs 'Underclass Hero'". Punknews.org. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
13. "Throwdown added to Warped 07; Madina Lake drop off". Alternative Press. April 26, 2007. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
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19. Paul, Aubin (December 19, 2007). "Sum 41 / Die Mannequin / Social Code (Canada, UK)". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
20. Paul, Aubin (January 18, 2008). "Pennywise / Sum 41 / The Vandals / Bowling for Soup". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
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22. "Music - Review of Sum 41 - Underclass Hero". BBC. Retrieved 2011-11-16.
23. "Underclass Hero". Billboard. Retrieved 2007-07-24.
24. Wood, Mikael (2007-07-20). "Underclass Hero Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-03-13.
25. Ed Thompson. . Music.ign.com. Archived from the original on 2011-06-28. Retrieved 2011-11-16.
26. NME.COM. "NME Reviews - Sum 41 - NME.COM". NME.COM. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
27. Hoard, Christian (2007-08-23). . Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2007-10-12. Retrieved 2012-03-13.
28. Christgau, Robert (2008-02-01). "Mary J. Blige, Manu Chao and Jill Scott Make the Grade". MSN Music.
29. Peisner, David (September 2007). "Once-hated pop punk craft disturbingly likable hooks". Spin. Retrieved 2018-02-12.
30. "Sum 41 - Underclass Hero (staff review)". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 2011-11-16.
31. guardian
32. 2019-02-02 at the Wayback Machine
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34. Lipshutz, Jason (11 April 2011). "Hairs Apparent". Billboard. p. 34. Retrieved 29 December 2018.
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36. "Australiancharts.com – Sum 41 – Underclass Hero". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
37. "Austriancharts.at – Sum 41 – Underclass Hero" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
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54. ゴールド等認定作品一覧 2007年7月. RIAJ (in Japanese). 2007-08-10. Retrieved 2010-11-10.

External links

• Underclass Hero at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)
• MTV News Interview
• Jam interview^[usurped]
• Underclass Hero at Metacritic