Concert Review: Simple Plan, Simply Perfect

You know that you are not young anymore when you start complaining that the music is too loud. I did not complain though. It’s just that after two or three songs from the California-based band New Found Glory, I could feel my head vibrate as if a tympanic drum was playing inside it. The band’s punk rock vibe reminiscent of more mainstream acts like Green Day, set the stage for the main band of the night, Simple Plan.

The night started acoustically though, with Jamie Scott as the first opening act. Vic and I came late; we only managed to catch his last song, a forlorn tune about rain. Apt, because the guy is British and England and rain are always intertwined. After 2 and a half hours, at around 10PM, it was only then that Simple Plan burst into the stage with a song, My Generation - from their latest album.

This is our second time to see Simple Plan – the first one was three years ago, under the stars at the Fort, when they were billeted dually with another Canadian act, Avril Lavigne. Nothing has removed the edge of the band though, live as well as studio-wise. It is interesting to note though that their latest effort is veering slowly towards pop-rock. The first time I heard Your Love is A Lie, I thought I was listening to a dance tune rockified. Interestingly, they only played maybe five songs from the latest CD, the other three were When I’m Gone. Instead they played their more popular hits from Shut Up to Addicted to crowd favorites like Welcome to My Life and Perfect.

Maybe it’s just me, or maybe the band members just got older, but I think they are more subdued now, as performers, as compared to 3 years ago. At the Fort, everyone was standing on their chairs and the guys were jumping all over the stage. Oh well.

Most interesting part of the show was when they incorporated Salamat into their Thank You hit, so instead of singing “Thank you” in the chorus, they sang “Salamat!”.

Sadly, they did not play my favorite song, No Love, from their latest CD. That song is just dripping with angst and despair, themes which do not anymore depict the band’s current state of being. They are now playing punk rock with a more joyful vibe.