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LONDON, Ont. - It was pretty simple at the John Labatt Centre last night.
When Simple Plan frontman Pierre Bouvier said it was time to jump, just about everybody bounced up and down.
Simple Plan are five Montreal-area rockers -- Bouvier, guitarists Sebastian Lefebvre and Jeff Stinco, bass player David Desrosiers and drummer Chuck Comeau.
Just before 9:30 p.m., the fab five jump-started their set with Shut Up which answered the loud chants a few minutes earlier of "Simple Plan, Simple Plan, Simple Plan."
"Everybody get up, get up, get up, get up," commanded Bouvier.
Simple Plan's way of rocking the world is to bring the punk and pop energy of some older bands to young fans who want their own heroes.
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Last night, that plan was working, with the crowd happy to scream and jump along.
By mid-set, it was time for one of the band's big teen alienation anthems, Welcome to My Life.
"Can I call you my friends?" Bouvier asked to even more intense screams. "Alright then, we are friends forever."
That was more than enough for the fans who were ready to identify with Welcome to My Life's lyrics about screaming against the angst behind the locked doors of teendom.
Also in the middle of the set, Simple Plan had been in overdrive for Thank You, which led to an extended series of "thank you, Londons" from Bouvier and his elf-like second-in-command, Desrosiers, that might have been a simple smirking.
Not many acts say it's "sexy London," however, so let's just take Simple Plan at its word.
The band went back to the 1960s for a cover of the Turtles' Happy Together. Played at blitz speed, it sounded fine and must have a few of the older parents in the crowd smile with recognition that the Turtles never moved that fast.
The Montreal rockers spent a lot of their set bounding off four black blocks at the front of the stage. The tiny Desrosiers seemed to thrive on the chance to stand tall and hoist his bass high above his head.
With 2004's Still Not Getting Any and this year's MTV Hard Rock Live (both Warner) adding to the Plan's world conquest, the band is finally making its first big Canadian tour after becoming stars in the U.S.
Another young band with a plan, Hedley, had the Simple Plan fans ready for their idols.
Hedley frontman Jacob Hoggard was a 2004 Canadian Idol contender.
Last night, Hoggard showed he has the fashion sense -- hot Hedley T -- and hot legs to run with the other Idols. The man was in shorts taken off a neon-skinned leopard and never stopped moving.
His Hedley bandmates rock hard enough to keep up with his manic jumping and kicking, making it clear Hoggard and Hedley will be around long after some other Idols are running on idle.
Simple Plan also plays right by its old friends.
Montreal ska outfit the Planet Smashers were buds back in the day when Bouvier, Comeau and Desrosiers were tiny teens in a band called Reset.
Last night, Planet Smashers had a spot on the bill, courtesy of the grownup Resetters, now Simple Plan. Planet Smashers returned the favour by playing a hard-driving set.
The Idle Sons opened the show.
It's probably not fair, but Simple Plan is the target for abuse by some older rock fans who never can stand whatever their younger siblings love.
Rock fans who probably planned to avoid the Montreal pop punkers last night can be expected at the arena on March 6, 2006. That's when concert industry website Pollstar and the band's own site say the long-rumoured visit by U.S. rock band Nine Inch Nails to the downtown London arena will take place.
About five weeks later, on April 12, Taste of Chaos -- a multi-band tour with such punk acts as Silverstein -- will play the centre, Pollstar says.
"I have not yet seen a confirmation sheet on either show," says Dave Harris, the centre's marketing director.