Simple Plan Albums (5)
What The Critics Say
Pop-punk practitioners rarely make it to a third album without declaring some sort of newfound sensibility -- they're going a little darker, say, or they're experimenting with a dancier sound. But Simple Plan stick to pretty familiar territory on album three, which maybe explains the unclever self-title: perhaps the plan for this one really is simple. The Montreal boys pound away at full speed here, cranking out a batch of short, frivolous songs that showcase Pierre Bouvier's nasal but weirdly appealing voice and one, "I Can Wait Forever," that seems to be rooted in real feeling. The whining hasn't let up (see "No Love" and "Generation"), but the fun hasn't either. Credit the producers: Timbaland's protégé Danja Hills pitches in, and so does Max Martin, a knob wizard known for shining up the songs of Kelly Clarkson and fellow Canadian Avril Lavigne. ~ Tammy La Gorce, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
It's difficult to tell where Simple Plan stops and Sum 41 and blink-182 begin. All of them wear logo T-shirts and boxy Dickies shorts; all of them reanimate vintage Green Day with boundless hyperactivity and a torrents of unrefined dick jokes; all of them have sold millions upon millions of records. And there's nothing wrong with that. Because unlike the mid-2000s surge of musical youth living on the fringes of feeling -- weepy emo kids on one side, bloody murder hardcore and metal hybridists on the other -- bands like Simple Plan celebrate the duty of kids to bop and act goofy. "Forget tomorrow," Pierre Bouvier sings. "I just wanna jump." (Why not? It worked for Van Halen.) Originally recorded for and broadcast on MTV, Live from the Hard Rock captures Simple Plan in concert in Orlando. They run through energetic versions of all their hits, from "Shut Up!" to "Worst Day Ever" to "Addicted" to "Welcome to My Life," and the crowd screams along with every single one. SP prove more than able to hit the breezy harmonies from their records, and their rhythm section-heavy live sound is effective for their athletic, pogo-ready songs. All of the stage chatter is included, which is a little irritating, particularly the lengthy intro to "Welcome to My Life" -- you had to be there -- but even that track eventually kicks in with a resounding crunch. Throughout Live from the Hard Rock, Bouvier often stops the songs to encourage more jumping or singing along, and he's Canadian, so he heartily thanks the audience for their eager participation. No doubt about it: it doesn't get much more squeaky clean than Simple Plan. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide
'Still Not Getting Any...'
Release Date 10/25/2004
Tracks 12
Label WEA
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Simple Plan's 2002 debut followed in the undeniably successful footsteps of blink-182. But while No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls appropriated that trio's boundless energy and focus on melody, Simple Plan was sweet where blink was crass. "I'm Just a Kid," "The Worst Day Ever," "I'd Do Anything" -- their song titles could have doubled for after-school specials. The Plan's smiling approach to the punk-pop sound was wildly successful, and put them at the genre's top tier. But like their peers, 2004 finds them seeing its sonic limitations. Good Charlotte went for epic scope with their 2004 entry Chronicles of Life and Death, Sum 41's Chuck bared the band's newfound conscience over salvos derived from hardcore and metal, and Simple Plan's Still Not Getting Any... de-emphasizes punk-pop hyperactivity in favor of straightforward, well-crafted modern rock. "Do you ever feel out of place?" Pierre Bouvier sings in "Welcome to My Life," the album's first single. "Like somehow you don't belong/And no one understands you?" It returns to the band's central themes of growing up, getting by, and being part of something bigger. But the song's half-time arrangement and terrific chorus hook aren't too far from the slick, ringing pop of Avril Lavigne. "Thank You," "Jump," and "Promise" are of the energetic No Pads, No Helmets mold. But tracks like "Perfect World," "Everytime," and "Crazy" follow "Life"'s mid-tempo lead, and also tie Simple Plan's voice-of-the-kids stance to lyrics questioning the world around them. "The future is ours/It's in our hands," says the chorus of "One," and its big-guitar sound is matched to a fleet of surging violins. The shift to a more dynamically rich sound suits Simple Plan just fine. As Still Not Getting Any...'s title and rowdier moments prove, they can still bring the spunky crowd-pleasers. But it's the album's less raucous and more thoughtful side that shows Simple Plan's investment in the future. [Still Not Getting Any... was available in three different covers; it was also issued in a bonus-DVD format.] ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide
'No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls'
Release Date 3/19/2002
Tracks 12
Label Lava
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
The members of Simple Plan don't have anything new to say, but at least it sounds like they're having a good time saying it. They're so full of pep and energy that they even seem to be having fun even when they're singing "God must hate me" or proclaiming that "life is a nightmare." Granted, they sing mostly about typical adolescent trauma -- their philosophy is best expressed in "I'm Just a Kid" when they bemoan that "the world is having more fun than me" -- but they do seem to have the knack for putting these issues into words. Simple Plan doesn't break any new ground and doesn't stay revved on all cylinders all the time. This probably won't move you if you consider bands such as blink-182 and Sum 41 to be too mainstream for your tastes, and you might also be disappointed if you're searching for the perfect pop record. But if you're interested in an unpretentious collection of reasonably catchy and energetic songs, then you might want to consider this album. ~ Todd Kristel, All Music Guide
