Formed during the members’ time in high school, Simple Plan is comprised of lead vocalist Pierre Bouvier, lead guitarist Jeff Stinco, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Sébastien Lefebvre, bassist and backing vocalist David Desrosiers, and drummer Chuck Comeau. Prior to the band’s earliest incarnation, Bouvier and Comeau had played in the relatively successful Canadian band Reset, who are known for touring alongside MxPx, Ten Foot Pole, and Face to Face. Rocking a pure punk-pop sound, Simple Plan performed at the 2001 Van Warped Tour, before heading to the studio to record their debut. With vocal assistance from Good Charlotte’s Joel Madden and Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus, the resulting album “No Pads, No Helmets… Just Balls” was released in March 2002. Aided by the singles “I’m Just a Kid”, “I’d Do Anything”, “Addicted”, and “Perfect”, the album peaked at No. 35 on the Billboard 200, later being certified double platinum. The album was supported by an extensive tour of over 300 worldwide shows, including a headline show at the 2003 Vans Warped Tour, and opening for Avril Lavigne.
The band’s 2004 follow-up, entitled “Still Not Getting Any…” was produced by Bob Rock and represented a more mature, less teenage angst approach to songwriting. Charting at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, the album earned strong reviews from critics and spawned the singles “Welcome to My Life”, “Shut Up”, and “How Could This Happen to Me”. The band embarked on a tour of the world in support of the album until February 2006, before returning to the studio.
Recorded in Los Angeles, U.S., Montréal, and Miami, Simple Plan’s eponymously-titled third full-length album was released in February 2008. Featuring a more romantic aesthetic than its predecessor the album peaked at No. 2 on the Canadian Album Chart, and No. 14 on the U.S. Billboard 200. The record was produced by Dave Fortman, known for his work with Justin Timberlake and Timbaland, and spawned the singles “When I’m Gone”, “Your Love Is a Lie”, and “Save You”. The band’s subsequent tour saw the band travel to Tel Aviv, Dubai, Estonia, and Poland all for the first time, as well as dates across the U.S., Canada, and the UK.
Simple Plan’s fourth full-length album “Get Your Heart On!” was released in June 2011. Featuring Weezer’s Rivers Cuomo, Natasha Beddingfield, and Alex Gaskarth of All Time Low, the album equaled their highest-charting Canadian release, debuting at No. 2.
Simple Plan are a far more influential band than they’re ever given credit for. Maybe it’s because the bands that owe an existential debt to the Montreal quintet aren’t the coolest but why should that matter? The fact remains that when it comes to the likes of All Time Low, We The Kings, We Are The In Crowd and Tonight Alive, it’s not quite that they would be nowhere without Simple Plan but their careers would definitely be in a very different place for damn sure. Still the fact remains that all of those bands and a lot more that I haven’t mentioned could still learn a lot from them in the live arena if nothing else. Simple Plan eschews the choreographed head banging, jumping and hairstyles of their predecessors and focus on a more honest connection with their audience. Lead singer Pierre Bouvier’s easy-going yet sincere banter with the audience shows their connection with them nearly as much as their precision tooled set lists, which consistently contain their biggest hits of the day with the deepest cuts from their back catalogue. This is all to say nothing of the whole bands natural chemistry; and truly in an age where pop-punk is making as stirring a comeback as it is, it would be a crime to miss out on one of the bands that truly perfected the art and influenced a generation of wide eyed fans to go out there and take on the world with nothing but a distorted power chord and a catchy hook.
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