Pierre is down-to-earth, self-deprecating and seriously an all round nice guy. He’s not afraid to joke about where he comes from and take the piss out of the band and their music.
Chuck: We didn’t play… Save YouPierre: Save You…save you…David: Which is by the way now called, ‘Shave You’.Pierre: ….*sings* I wish I could shaaaave you…
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| Pierre and Delilah |
How can you not love that face? Anyway.
Pierre [EP, Pips…] is one of those singers in a band that I will always recognise and respect. Simple Plan would not be the band it is today if this wonderful man wasn’t fronting it.
The dreaded word…. frontman
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| M Shadows, A7X |
I’m not a fan of the term ‘frontman’. Especially when it comes to Pierre Bouvier of Simple Plan. Let me unpack that a bit for you. When I read the word ‘frontman’ I visualise a rockstar, a guy who is cocky and struts around the stage. I would call M Shadows of Avenged Sevenfold a frontman. Because that is what he is most definitely, at least on stage. Off stage…not so much. But, that’s the point really. [I’m not dissing Shads by any means…he’s my second favourite lead vocalist ;)]
Pierre on the other hand, doesn’t come across that way. Yes, he exudes charisma and can hold the crowd in the palm of his hand, but he doesn’t come across cocky. He’s real, personable… almost like an Aussie. Maybe that’s the Canadian in him, though. Haha.
The other issue I have with the term ‘frontman’ is that it seems to shine the spotlight on the lead singer and take all the attention away from the rest of the band, who, to be honest, are just as important.
It’s also problematic when you get a band where even the lead singer is forgotten or not known.
Eg. When I first heard about Fall Out Boy…I thought Pete Wentz was the ‘frontman’ because he was the one most seen in the media.
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| Pete Wentz, frontman? |
But, guess what…this is their lead singer.
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| This is not Pete Wentz. This is Patrick Stump, lead vocalist of FOB |
I don’t think it’s necessary to call them the ‘frontman’… ‘the face of the band’ whatever. The band should be seen as a whole! Incidentally I think the drummer is the most important member of the band…
Lucky Simple Plan has four drummers. [What?]
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| Chuck, official drummer |
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| Pierre, self-professed better drummer than Chuck |
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| David actually better drummer than Chuck, according to Chuck |
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| Seb, air drummer extraordinaire |
So, anyway. Let’s ban the word ‘frontman’. On an aside, I’m sure all the lead vocalists of bands who grew up with self-esteem issues would thank you for it.
Simple Plan and other bands
In today’s world of One Direction [and the fall out going on with them at the moment] and dance music that seems to be taking over the airwaves, I miss the days of actual bands. You know…Good Charlotte, Blink 182, A7X, Simple Plan, Eskimo Joe, Coldplay, The Living End….and then back further, The Eagles, ACDC… and I could name many others. But, I won’t.
The point I want to make right now, is that these bands write their own music and play their own instruments and have fun doing it. They also care about their fans [maybe not so much Blink…] and want to make a difference through their music.
Not saying that pop groups or other artists can’t or don’t, but I think bands like Simple Plan and A7X are special in ways that I can’t even really put in words.
Watching a band live is something I think everyone should do at least once in their life. I’ve been pretty lucky to do it a lot more than once.
Coldplay x 2
Simple Plan x 3
Eskimo Joe [and support acts]
Third Day
The Eagles
Needtobreathe
Tonight Alive
The Never Ever
We The Kings
Youth Group
All American Rejects
Kisschasy
The Madden Brothers [I count as a band, because Good Charlotte] [and support acts]
Murphy’s Lore
…to name just a few.
This whole blog post seems a tad disjointed, but I’ll just blame this face and I’m sure you’ll forgive me…or him.
PS. Pierre is the best band dad going.
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| Pierre and his daughters [from his instagram] |
Marly's World 