Canadian pop-punk icons Simple Plan reflect on 25 tumultuous, chart-topping years together in a new documentary
If you were a teen in the early aughts, odds are Simple Plan was part of your playlist with tunes like “Perfect” and “I’m Just a Kid.” Back in 2002, the rise to fame for the Quebec pop-punk rockers seemed downright meteoric — their first album, No Pads, No Helmets . . . Just Balls, produced multiple chart-toppers and set them off on a world tour with fellow Canadian rock star Avril Lavigne. But the documentary Simple Plan: The Kids in the Crowd unveils a more complex history of the band.
Through the eyes of lead singer Pierre Bouvier, drummer Chuck Comeau, lead guitarist Jeff Stinco and rhythm guitar player Sébastien Lefebvre, the doc takes a look at their now decades-long trajectory, from scrappy little garage band in Montreal to a recent 25th-anniversary international tour. “It was a real eye-opener to see how much we’ve accomplished,” says Bouvier. “I feel like we’re a band that’s always had Imposter Syndrome. When you look at it as a movie, you realize all the incredible things that we need to be proud of ourselves for.”
The skeptical attitudes that critics and hardcore punk fans had towards the band at the outset of their career is something still ingrained in Bouvier. “That was definitely difficult and I’m glad we had each other to lean on, because if I would’ve been a solo artist, it would’ve destroyed [me],” he says. “You’re going to remember the one [person] that says, ‘You guys suck.’ It definitely impacted us and left a mark that is still on us today. That’s where that chip on the shoulder came from. But it has also put a fire underneath us and made us want to be a better live band and put out better records to prove everybody wrong.”
While other groups from that era have long ago gone their separate ways, Simple Plan keeps on plugging along. Bouvier attributes that loyalty to having worked out their differences in the early days, but Comeau feels their shared history also plays a part. “We all came from the same school. We all have very similar families, backgrounds and values. I think that’s been tremendously helpful,” he reflects. “If you try to find the best guitar player, the best singer and the best drummer just to form this super-group, you end up with people that you don’t really know, people that maybe don’t have that much in common with. We were friends before we were bandmates. When things start to get tough and there’s tension, I think you can lean back on that shared background.”
Not that Simple Plan hasn’t had its moments of friction. “The first band that Chuck and I started, we realized quickly that even though we had the same goal, our personalities were clashing. And at the tender age of 18, that was too much for us to handle and I ended up kicking him out of the band that we were in,” Bouvier admits. “It made me realize that Chuck is obsessive at managing the business side of the band and I didn’t have that in my DNA. I focus on the art, on the music, on the performance . . . and the other part is not my passion. That breakup made me realize that while there’s going to be times in the future where I might really not want to hang out with him, I need someone like that if I want to get really far.”
The occasional flare-up between Bouvier and Comeau is still to be expected, but the two now take a different approach to their arguments. “Having that rupture at an early age made us understand that we can’t let that happen again,” says Bouvier. “When the tension gets high, instead of breaking up, we just have to sit there, hang out a little longer, communicate and make it work. And that’s why I think we’re still together.” There is also no one else that can appreciate the beauty of the experience like those who were there since the beginning. “We’ve put a lot of heart and soul and passion into this life and this band, and it’s our lives,” says Comeau. “The first 10, 15 years, it is your entire existence — and I still have that passion. [The documentary] made me realize just how full-on and how intense this ride has been.”
What will never lose its power for Bouvier and Comeau is hearing about what their old hits still mean to fans. “We have people coming up to us all the time telling us, ‘Man, if it wasn’t for you guys — for this song, for this band — I wouldn’t be here today,’” says Comeau. “The first time you hear that, you’re a bit skeptical. And then you hear it so many times that you realize these songs are not just ours, they’re the fans’. They’ve taken ownership of them and made them a part of their journey. So, when we play, we don’t just play for us, we play for all these people.” If taking stock is something Simple Plan historically has had a hard time doing, The Kids in the Crowd now serves as a collective memory of their victories. “I really struggle with being proud of all the success that we’ve had,” says Bouvier. “Having this documentary has been a great way to look back and tell myself, ‘Hey, you did pretty good.’ ”
Simple Plan: The Kids in the Crowd, streaming on Prime Video