It’s safe to say that my weekend with Simple Plan was Perfectly Perfect. They’re on the road for their No Pads, Just Helmets… Just Balls 15ème Anniversary Tour and I was lucky enough to attend Friday’s show in Boston, Massachusetts and Saturday’s show in New York City. The lineup included Seaway and Set it Off before Simple Plan.
I had never heard of Seaway before Friday’s show, but I fell in love. They had so much energy on stage that they really drew the crowd in. Usually opening bands aren’t well known, but these guys already had fans rocking out to songs and singing along. During the set they performed a cover of Stacey’s Mom, which brought the crowd to its feet. It was truly a one-of- a-kind moment to get to jam out to a cover like that, and a lot of fun. During their set they sang, Best Mistake, Trick (So Sweet), Freak, Goon, Slam and they finished off with their best-known song, Airhead. I have replayed Airhead multiple times since the show with no shame.
Next, Set It Off took the stage by storm. I absolutely fell in love that night with Set it Off’s music, their on-stage energy, and overall great personality as a band. I was in the front row for both shows, and at one point the lead singer Cody was in front of me. I couldn’t reach his hand, but he waited until my friend pushed me over the barricade to grab it. It was really an amazing moment for me as a fan, and something I’ll remember.
Set it Off opened with Why Worry continued with Forever Stuck in Our Youth, Diamond Girl, Ancient History, Upside Down, Want, Something New, Fake Love, Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing, Hypnotized, and they closed out their set with, Life Afraid. If you haven’t heard their music, I highly recommend it.
After Set it Off, at exactly 9pm Simple Plan came out in full force. A great thing about this show was that there wasn’t much time between sets, so they didn’t keep us waiting. Simple Plan’s energy was wild, and the crowd was automatically rocking out when they opened with, I’d do Anything. They played the entire No Pads, No Helmets… Just Balls album including The Worst Day Ever, You Don’t Mean Anything, I’m just a Kid, When I’m With You, Meet you There and Addicted. Pierre said before this song, “This is the song that has the word dick in it!” and the crowd erupted with laughter. They continued with My Alien, God Must Hate Me, I Won’t Be There, One Day, Grow Up/ Vacation, and they finished the set with, Perfect.
There were also a few cool moments with the band in New York City. Pierre thanked the crowd for how much the fans have meant to them over the years. He switched spots with Chuck (the drummer) and Chuck took the mic and went into detail about being five best friends in High School, playing in Chuck’s basement. They’ve remained the same five guys in the band since then, and the guy who first signed them (his name was Adam) was in the crowd that night and the entire crowd chanted “Adam!” As Pierre said, “Thank you New York – that was a moment!”
After Chuck finished his speech, he stage dived into the crowd, which was absolutely awesome. Once they finished their main set, they came back out shortly after for a half-hour encore. The songs from the encore included, Shut Up, Jump, Boom!, Your Love Is a Lie, This Song Saved My Life, Crazy, and they finished the night off with, Welcome To My Life.
Overall, I give this show and tour an A+. The bands are so down-to-earth and humble. They all truly care about their fans, and are so thankful for our dedication over the years. If you get the chance to see them on this tour, definitely do it. I promise you won’t regret it, because it truly is a perfect evening with our favorite Punk Rockers.
