Simple Plan is a
Canadian pop punk band from
Montréal, Québec. The band has had no line up changes since its inception in 1999. Members are
Pierre Bouvier (
lead vocals),
Jeff Stinco (
lead guitar),
Sébastien Lefebvre (
rhythm guitar,
backing vocals),
David Desrosiers (
bass,
backing vocals) and
Chuck Comeau (
drums and
percussion). They have released three studio albums:
No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls (2002),
Still Not Getting Any... (2004), and
Simple Plan (2008); as well as two widely marketed
live albums:
Live in Japan 2002 (2003) and
MTV Hard Rock Live (2005).
History
Formation (1999–2002)
Pierre Bouvier takes to the air in Shawinigan-Sud, Quebec, 20 June 2009.
Simple Plan began in 1996 with the formation of a band named
Reset by friends
Pierre Bouvier,
Charles-André "Chuck" Comeau,
Philippe Jolicoeur, and
Adrian White.
[1] Reset toured around Canada with bands such as
MXPX,
Ten Foot Pole, and
Face to Face, but only managed to gain modest popularity.
[2] The debut album,
No Worries, was released in 1999, and Comeau left soon after to go to college.
[1] Two years later he met with high school friends Jean-François "Jeff" Stinco and
Sébastien Lefebvre who were in separate bands of their own, and combined to create the band.
[1] Meanwhile, Reset released a second CD,
No Limits (the two CDs would be re-released as a single CD in 2006, with liner note comments from Bouvier and Comeau). In late 1999, Comeau and Bouvier reacquainted at a
Sugar Ray concert
[2] and Bouvier left Reset soon after to join Comeau.
David Desrosiers replaced Bouvier in Reset, but he too left the band six months later.
[1][2] This allowed Bouvier, who had doubled as the band's front man and bassist, to concentrate on the singing.
The origin of the band's name is obscure. Band members have given various comical responses on this point, including that the band was their simple plan to avoid obtaining a job at McDonald's, or similar fast food entities. However, most likely, the name is derived from the movie "
A Simple Plan",
[3][4] or the
Piebald song "Just a Simple Plan".
No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls (2002–2004)
In 2002, Simple Plan released their first studio album,
No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls which led to the subsequent singles: "
I'm Just a Kid", "
I'd Do Anything", "
Addicted", and "
Perfect". Simple Plan is noted as saying that they were aiming at a pure pop-punk record.
[5] The name of the CD echoes the popular tag line for the sport of
rugby, "No pads, no helmets, just balls."
The record was originally released in the United States with twelve tracks, ending with "Perfect". Enhanced and foreign editions came in several different versions with up to two additional tracks in addition to the original twelve. For example, the U.S. release contained the extra songs "Grow Up", and "My Christmas List", while the UK release contained the extra songs "One By One" and "American Jesus" (a live version of a cover of a
Bad Religion song), as well as the two music videos, "I'd Do Anything" and "I'm Just a Kid".
The record also contained vocals from singers from two other pop-punk bands as "I'd Do Anything" included vocals by
Mark Hoppus from
Blink-182, and "You Don't Mean Anything" included vocals by
Joel Madden from
Good Charlotte.
In 2002, the year Simple Plan released the album, Simple Plan played more than 300 shows, topped the Alternative New Artist Chart, and played a sold out tour in Japan.
[6] In 2003, the band played as a headliner on the
Vans Warped Tour — an appearance memorialized in the comedy slasher film,
Punk Rock Holocaust, in which four of the five band members are killed. They would also play short stints on the Warped Tour in 2004 and 2005. Also in 2003, they opened for
Avril Lavigne on her "Try To Shut Me Up" Tour.
[6] In addition to several headlining tours, they have also opened for
Green Day and
Good Charlotte.
[6]
Still Not Getting Any... (2004–2006)
The band performing at Agawam, May 2005.
In 2004, Simple Plan released their second album,
Still Not Getting Any... which led to the subsequent singles, "
Welcome to My Life", "
Shut Up!", "
Untitled (How Could This Happen to Me?)", "
Crazy", and (in some markets) "
Perfect World".
As mentioned before, when writing "
No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls", the members of Simple Plan were aiming at a pure pop-punk record. This time however, when writing "
Still Not Getting Any...", the members of Simple Plan were noted as saying that they were not limiting themselves to the punk genre, but rather letting themselves write "good music".
[5]
According to the bonus DVD of Still Not Getting Any..., while making the CD the members of Simple Plan thought of many names including "Get Rich or Die Trying" and "In The Zone". They decided on the name Still Not Getting Any... for a list of explained reasons. The most popular and most likely reason is that the members of Simple Plan thought that they weren't getting any good reviews, Bouvier once noting that they only had one recent good review in
Alternative Press. Another reason may be because they were still not getting any respect. There are many more variations the band members have given, as anything can really be put after the
ellipsis, including "better", "smarter", "funnier", and the obvious sexual connotation. Comeau once described the name of the album as "versatile".
"
Still Not Getting Any..." showed a dramatic change in Simple Plan's style as well. They still kept their style of downbeat lyrics matched to upbeat music, but managed to transcend from the standard pop-punk genre. Although many of the tracks on this CD still carry the feeling of teen angst that is probably most noticeable in the song "I'm Just a Kid" from the first album
No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls, the general slant of this album tends toward slightly deeper and more mature lyrical themes, as well as a more mainstream sound that edges away from the pure pop-punk style of their last album. Some critics have pointed towards the inclusion of 'classic' or 'mainstream' rock elements, claiming the album 'de-emphasizes punk-pop hyperactivity in favor of straightforward, well-crafted modern rock'.
[7]
Simple Plan (2006–2009)
The band in concert in Trenton NJ, December 2007
After nearly a year and a half in support of "S
till Not Getting Any...", the band ended most touring in February 2006, giving only a few shows, taking some time off, and beginning work on their third CD. As announced in Bouvier's official
MySpace blog, Bouvier headed to
Miami as on about 21 March 2007 to work with an unnamed producer, who later proved to be
Dave Fortman. The band entered the studio for pre-production in Los Angeles on 29 June. On 15 July they returned to
Montreal, to record at Studio Piccolo, the same studio at which they had recorded "
Still Not Getting Any...." They finished recording and headed back to
Miami and LA to mix the album. The final part of making their record was done in
New York and it was officially completed on 21 October, though they later re-entered the studio to re-record some of the lyrics to the song "Generation."
"
When I'm Gone", the first single from
Simple Plan was released on 29 October when the band held a fan webcast.
Simple Plan was produced by Dave Fortman (
Evanescence,
Mudvayne),
Danjahandz (
Timbaland,
Justin Timberlake) and
Max Martin known for his work with
Avril Lavigne and
Kelly Clarkson. On 17 February 2008, Simple Plan achieved their highest charting single in the UK. After the first two albums just missed the UK top 40, "
When I'm Gone" gave the band their best chart position in the UK, coming in at number 26. On 29 November 2007, the band announced that the CD release would be postponed from the originally-scheduled 29 January 2008 date to what proved to be the actual release date of 12 February 2008. The Japan version, with two bonus tracks, was released on 6 February 2008. It has been their least successful album to date, and the record ended up only spawning one single.
[8]
After completing an around-the-world promotional tour, Simple Plan played several December 2007 holiday shows. After continued promotional tours in January, Simple Plan played a triple bill in
Camden Town,
London on 27 January 2008, with the first show featuring songs from the band's first CD, the second from the second, and the third from the new release. The band played four U.S. shows in late February, and completed a European tour running until late April. The band played four Japan dates, followed by several European festivals and headlining dates. On 1 July 2008, the band gave a free concert on
Quebec City's
Plains of Abraham, attracting a crowd of 150,000 to the
Canada Day show.
[9] After a return to the Far East in late July and early August, the band played a Cross Canada Tour
[10] with
Faber Drive,
Cute is What We Aim For[11] and
Metro Station (
The All-American Rejects were originally announced for the tour, but canceled due to other commitments). After dates in Germany, Mexico, and Australia, the band played its second full European tour of the year from 28 October to 29 November, playing Estonia and Poland for the first time. The band also played
Tel Aviv and
Dubai in early December—shows at which the band played as a four-piece, with Desrosiers absent due to a family emergency and Lefebvre on bass. The band played an eight-show South American tour in March, and are playing various festivals and individual shows in cities ranging from
Calgary to
Moscow.
Astronaut (2009-present)
It was confirmed on January 19, 2011 that the album would consist of 12 tracks.
Confirmed Tracks
- “This Song Saved My Life"[12]
- "You Suck At Love" [13][14]
- "Astronaut"[15]
- "I Can’t Keep My Hands Off Of You" [16]
Currently, the band is working on their fourth studio album. It's been revealed that
Brian Howes is producing.
[17] [18]
During the writing process of the album, the band collaborated with various songwriters such as
Claude Kelly,
Weezer's
Rivers Cuomo,
[19] Matt Squire,
Jim Irvin,
Julian Emery, Michael Warren
[20] and
David Hodges.
[21]
On June 18, 2010, the band played, for the first time, the new song "You Suck at Love" at the Bamboozle Roadshow 2010 in
Cleveland, Ohio. The song is set to be included on their forthcoming album.
On November 18, 2010, the band has confirmed that recording for their fourth studio album has been completed and that they have officially left the studio. The album now needs to be mixed and mastered and work made on the cover art.
[22]
On January 12, it was announced they would be joining
Warped Tour 2011 from June 24 to July 24.
In other media
In August 2008, "I Can Wait Forever" was chosen as the title track for
Animax Asia's original feature length anime
LaMB. The band appears in the sci-fi cyberpunk anime feature as themselves, performing the theme song. Animax Asia also made an animated video for "I Can Wait Forever".
[23]
In October 2008, the band recorded their own version of
The Hockey Theme, for forty years the theme song for
Hockey Night in Canada.
[24]
For the
2008–09 NHL season, their song "Generation" was the goal horn (part of the song is played when the team scores) of the
Montreal Canadiens of the
NHL.
Style
Simple Plan's style of music has been described as
pop punk by the
Calgary Herald,
[25] The Torontoist,
[26] Channel News Asia,
[27] Allmusic,
[28] NME,
[29] MTV,
[30] The Guardian,
[31] the
BBC,
[32] Rocklouder
[33] About.com,
[34] Entertainment Weekly[35] and
VH1;
[36] punk rock revivalist by
The New York Times,
[37] "Dude Rock" by
Digital Spy[38]; with
Rolling Stone reviews describing
No Helmets No Pads... Just Balls as "new-punk".
[39][40] Atlantic Records marketing material has described the band's style as having "classic punk energy and modern
pop sonics".
[41]
Side projects
In addition to their involvement in the band, members of Simple Plan have been involved in a number of side projects.
Simple Plan Foundation
The band performs as a four-piece in Dubai in Desrosiers' absence, 5 December 2008
The members of Simple Plan have helped nonprofit and advocacy groups by donating to many established organizations such as the MTV Asia Aid benefit,
MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), RADD (Recording Artists, Actors, and Athletes against Drunk Driving), and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. However, after being frustrated because the members did not know exactly where their money was going to, the Simple Plan members created the Simple Plan Foundation,
[42] a foundation that focuses on teen problems ranging from suicide to poverty to drug addiction.
[42][43] As of 9 December 2005, the Simple Plan Foundation had raised more than $100,000.
[42] The list of donors included venues on their November-December 2005 Canadian tour.
In June 2008, Bouvier announced plans for the foundation to distribute $100,000 to organizations that aid children or families experiencing difficulties due to handicaps or illness.
[44] Selected organizations included Children's Wish Foundation, Kids Help Phone, and War Child Canada, as well as College Beaubois (the high school
alma mater of all band members except Desrosiers).
[45]
In addition, the members held a benefit for the Foundation in August. While the band's January show in Montreal had been to benefit the Foundation, this was described as the first fundraising event. It consisted of brunch and an acoustic performance.
[46] An additional fundraising event was held on September 2009 in Montreal. In October 2008, the band announced a special release, on iTunes, of the single
Save You, to benefit the Foundation, with a special composite video featuring cancer survivors. The song was inspired by the struggle with cancer of Bouvier's brother Jay.
[47]
Damage Control
Damage Control was a reality television series hosted by Pierre Bouvier that first aired on MTV on March 6, 2005. On
Damage Control, parents would tell their teenage son or daughter that they would be going away over the weekend, but in actuality, they are just a few houses down monitoring them with Bouvier via hidden cameras and microphones. The teenager would be placed in awkward situations, in which he/she must make decisions. Parents can earn money if they can guess what their teenager will do, and after the parents come back (always with too little time for the teenager to conceal what has occurred), the teenager, still unaware of the filming, can win money by confessing. Two seasons were filmed before any episodes aired, and no more were planned or filmed, due to the likelihood that once the episodes aired, potential subjects would quickly catch on to what was going on.
Man of The Hour
Man Of The Hour is a Simple Plan side project that features Lefebvre and Patrick Langlois. Man Of The Hour is an internet radio show found on iTunes-Radio-Alternative-
Idobi Radio. During one of the radio shows, Langlois and Lefebvre noted that Man Of The Hour started as a joke, and that they wanted to begin a band with the name because they liked how it sounded. They also said that they did not have the time, and realized it was faster to do pre-recorded radio shows instead. The show features commentary by Lefebvre and Langlois, who devote part of the time to playing songs they like, and feature occasional guests (either in person or by telephone), including Simple Plan members.
Role Model Clothing
Role Model Clothing is a clothing line owned by Bouvier, Comeau (who are often seen wearing the shirts on stage and in the band's music videos) and Langlois. The line mostly markets shirts, which invariably include the words "ROLE MODEL" in the design. Erik Chandler, the bassist and backing vocalist of the band
Bowling for Soup, is often seen wearing a Role Model shirt.
Miscellaneous
Patrick Langlois
Langlois (wearing a Role Model shirt) records Simple Plan's performance in Osaka in May 2008.
Patrick "Pat" Langlois (also credited as "Patrick C. Cunningham") is a friend of the band who was responsible for merchandising (he was often seen running the "merch stand"), and also acted as
webmaster,
photographer, and
videographer.
On 7 December 2008, Langlois posted on the band web site that he would continue to work for the band, but would also become a mobile journalist for
MusiquePlus. He stated that he would continue to bring fans "all that is Simple Plan".
[48] However, the program on which Langlois was working,
MP6, was canceled by MusiquePlus in early December.
[49] Langlois is still employed by MusiquePlus, doing interviews, and is sometimes seen at Simple Plan shows.
[citation needed]
Langlois has appeared in most Simple Plan videos, with his appearances sometimes painful. He was kicked in the crotch in "I'd Do Anything", had a bowling ball dropped on his head and his apartment destroyed in "Addicted", was knocked down by the band in "Don't Wanna Think About You", and had a bottle smashed out of his hand by a tennis ball hit by Lefebvre in "When I'm Gone". He is also seen giving a thumbs up in "Perfect", as a valet in "Shut Up", in the crowd in the gym in "I'm Just a Kid", getting out of a car in "Welcome to My Life", and as an emergency services worker in "Untitled (How Could This Happen To Me?)", a video in which his pseudonym was used as the name of the drunk driver.
[citation needed]
Affiliation with television and movies
Earlier in its career, Simple Plan had a strong affiliation with
What's New, Scooby-Doo?. They performed the theme song and appeared as themselves in the episode "Simple Plan and the Invisible Madman" in which excerpts from "The Worst Day Ever" are twice heard,
[50][51] as well as parts of "You Don't Mean Anything".
[52][53] Additionally, "I'd Do Anything" can be heard in the episode "It's Mean, It's Green, It's the Mystery Machine".
The song "Grow Up" was used in the 2002 movie, "Scooby Doo", and is on the movie's official soundtrack as well. The song "Don't Wanna Think About You" was used in the movie, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. The video for that song depicts the band racing across town to get to a premiere of a Scooby-Doo movie (the dog and other cast members appear at the premiere), only to arrive seconds late.
Simple Plan also appeared in the 2004 film '
New York Minute', featuring the song Vacation in a live concert as part of the film.
Generation was played in part of an episode of
Unnatural History.
Band members
Discography
[edit] Awards and nominations
Bouvier looks out over the crowd in Porto Alegre, Brazil, 18 March 2009
Awards
CASBY Awards[54]
2002 Won CASBY Award
Juno Awards
2009 Nominated for Juno Award
2009 Nominated for Juno Award(for the group itself)
2006 Won Juno Fan Choice Award
2005 Nominated for Juno Award
2005 Nominated for Juno Award
2005 Nominated for Juno Award
Kerrang! Awards
2008 Nominated for Kerrang! Award
MTV Asia Awards
2006 Nominated for MTV Asia Award
MTV Video Music Awards
2004 Nominated for MTV Video Music Award
2003 Nominated for MTV Video Music Award
MuchMusic Video Awards
2009 Won MuchMusic Video Award
2008 Won MuchMusic Video Award
2008 Nominated for MuchMusic Video Award
2008 Nominated for MuchMusic Video Award
2006 Won MuchMusic Video Award
2006 Nominated for MuchMusic Video Award
2006 Nominated for MuchMusic Video Award
2005 Won MuchMusic Video Award
2005 Nominated for MuchMusic Video Award
2005 Nominated for MuchMusic Video Award
2004 Won MuchMusic Video Award
2003 Won MuchMusic Video Award
NRJ Music Awards
2007 Nominated for NRJ Music Award
Teen Choice Awards
2008 Nominated for Teen Choice Award
2005 Won Teen Choice Award
ADISQ
2006 Won
artiste s'étant illustré le plus hors Québec
