Simple Plan hits anew with Untitled

Reviewers are still hard put on how to classify the music of Simple Plan. There are those who say that the group from Montreal does punk while others say it is rock or pop or better yet, poprock. But as the past few years have shown, putting these guys in a pigeonhole is not easy. Their music is evolving and they have reached the point when they do not care anymore about staying within certain boundaries.

So the best thing to do is to think of the Plan as a band that knows what it is good at and where it is heading. At this point in their careers, the direction that vocalist Pierre Bovier, drummer Chuck Comeau, bassist David Desrosiers and guitarists Sebastien Lefebvre and Jeff Stinco are headed for are more hits as one of the most successful new bands of the moment.

It was only three years ago when Simple Plan released the album No Pads, No Helmets, Just Balls. Kids all over the world loved their songs and soon it was one hit after another, Perfect, Addicted and I’d Do Anything for the boys from Quebec. They say it was these guys’ ability to talk in a language teenagers understand that made them instant favorites. Of course, it also doesn’t hurt that unlike most punk groups, the boys of Simple Plan are nice. They opened for Avril Lavigne in Manila early this year and while Avril pouted all the time, the Plan smiled, signed autographs, posed for pictures and were generally nice.

The latest by the Plan is titled Still Not Getting Any and the boys breezed through the dreaded sophomore jinx by producing three consecutive hits, Welcome to My Life, Perfect World and Untitled. Simple Plan has discovered a surefire chart formula. They are once again talking to teenagers about problems they have in common with well-written lyrics set against catchy melodies.

Well done boys.

Top 20 Videoes

Untitled was the number one video in the MYX countdown last week. It has dropped to number two but that should not really be taken as a sign that Still Not Getting Any is on its way down. It still has several possible hit singles and should continue to do well until the next Simple Plan album comes along.

Meanwhile, here are top 20 videos from MYX this week: Incomplete by the Backstreet Boys; Untitled by Simple Plan; Tell Me Where It Hurts by MYMP; The Day You Said Goodnight by Hale; We Belong Together by Mariah Carey; She’s No You by Jesse McCartney; I Want to Know What Love Is by Sarah Geronimo; Same Ground by Kitchie Nadal; 40 Kinds of Sadness by Ryan Cabrera; Hold You Down by Jennifer Lopez;

Hallelujah by Bamboo; Come Get Some by Rooster; You and Me by Lifehouse; Through the Fire by Nina; I’ll Never Go by Erik Santos; Stay by Cueshe; Hollaback Girl by Gwen Stefani; Don’t Phunk with My Heart by Black Eyed Peas; How Could You by Mario; and Goin’ Crazy by Natalie.

A Lot Like Love Soundtrack

For more pop rock tunes check out the soundtrack to the romantic comedy A Lot Like Love that stars Ashton Kutcher, who is looking his hunkiest best in the movie and Amanda Peet. This one has really interesting cuts because the story is about how it takes seven years for two people to realize that they were made for each other. So the music used are hit songs from the past seven years or so, and that means a lot of old favorites in the album.

If You Leave Me Now by Chicago; Look What You’ve Done by Jet; Brighter Than Sunshine by Aqualung; Mint Car by The Cure; Semi-Checkered Life by Third Eye Blind; Walkin’ on the Sun by Smash Mouth; Save Tonight by Eagle-Eye Cherry and Hands of Time by Groove Armada among others.

The Ammo Poprock Collection

Of more recent vintage are the contents of Ammo, an enjoyable poprock collection that celebrates the summer of 2005. As of this moment you hear these songs playing while hanging out with your friends, walking on the beach, dancing or simply driving around. Later when somebody decides to make a movie about today, these are some of the songs they might want to put in the soundtrack:

Sick Cycle Carousel by Lifehouse; Be Like That by 3 Doors Down; The Reason by Hoobastank; Wherever You will Go by The Calling; Best I Ever Had (Grey Sky Morning by Vertical Horizon; Stacy’s Mom by Fountains of Wayne; Then the Morning Comes by Smash Mouth; Smooth Criminal by Alien Ant Farm; Big Yellow Taxi by Counting Crows; and others.