Article & Photos by: Ommar Ortuvia

Houston, TX — Simple Plan, the self-described “electro-pop-punk” band from Quebec, Canada, spent the last bit of summer touring the United States with their “Bigger Than You Think” tour. On the road they took Texas punk rockers Bowling For Soup, Colorado’s 3OH!3, and singer/guitarist LØLØ, stopping in downtown Houston’s 713 Music Hall on the evening of September 5th.

Doors opened at 5:30 and at 6:30 sharp LØLØ took the stage, for a 30-minute show full of angsty and catchy songs which got the crowd moving. Afterwards, 3OH!3 took the stage, with the duo and backup musicians bravely sporting matching purple Colorado Rockies baseball jerseys. Probably fully aware that the local Astros have won the World Series, twice, the band poked fun at their attire, stating that the Houston crowd might not even know who the team is since the Rockies have “sucked for a while.” After this initial ice breaker, the band laid into a 40-minute set that played all their known hits from the last 20 years, such as “Starstrukk,” and their closer “Don’t Trust Me.” The duo and their musicians exuded much energy throughout their set, dynamically moving from one side of the stage to the other nonstop. They had a notable following in the crowd, with lot of hands going up showing their classic o-shape with the 3 fingers on each end, making the band name (3-O-3).

Bowling For Soup came next, and as fellow Texans, the crowd went wild once they took the stage. They kicked off their set with “Girl All the Bad Guys Want,” followed by a mashup of Tony Basil’s “Hey Mickey,” Beastie Boys’ “Fight For Your Right,” and fellow tour band 3OH!3’s “DONTTRUSTME.” Afterwards “High School Never Ends” was performed, followed by one of the crowd favorites: “Ohio (Come Back to Texas)” which for anyone originally from the Lone Star State who has been away knows, tugs at your heart with mentions of NASA, Mexican food, Blue Bell ice cream, and Mrs. Baird’s. Throughout the set singer/guitarist Jaret Reddick would perform their usual bit of semi-stand up comedy between songs with the other band members, playing off of each other’s wackiness and silliness, keeping things entertaining and fun. After a cover of Fountain of Wayne’s “Stacy’s Mom,” they finished off their set with their biggest hit “1985.”

While awaiting Simple Plan’s entrance on stage, the big screens exhibited some mini-montages during the band’s initial rise to fame in the early 2000s. This was a good reminder on how the band was back then: young, scrappy, full of energy, and ready to take on the world. Cameos by artists that they toured with from that time also appeared on the montage, like Blink-182 and Avril Lavigne. As a reminder of those days, the band opened with “I’d do Anything,” off of their 2002 debut studio album No Pads, No Helmets…Just Balls. This nostalgic start gave their older fans a reason to go wild, which automatically set the mood for the night. They followed up this oldie with a new song, “Nothing Changes,” from the soundtrack to their 2025 documentary Simple Plan: The Kids in the Crowd. Their set continued with this mix of old and modern songs, keeping the crowd jumping, singing, reliving their youth, and singing along…sometimes with their own kids.

Towards the end of the night, the band played “What’s New Scooby Doo?,” which was the theme song to said show from 2002. Prior to them starting the song, lead singer Pierre Bouvier encouraged anyone in the crowd with a Scooby Doo themed outfit/costume to get up on stage. Seeing the stage packed with people wearing Scooby Doo onesies, he mentioned that Houston might be the place with the most costumed fans on stage. Afterwards they played “Where I Belong” before exiting the stage, in preparation for the encore. The encore then was comprised of “I’m Just a Kid,” with a special appearance by Jaret Reddick from Bowling For Soup. He lent his comedic presence and vocals to complement the second half of the song, singing the rest of the song while Pierre took over drums, and with drummer Chuck Comeau crowd surfing while sporting an Astros baseball jersey. The last song of the night was “Perfect,” with Pierre performing an acoustic intro version, having the band jump in after the first verse and chorus with the full pop-punk power that they are known for. After a 90-minute show full of high energy, nostalgia, confetti cannons, beach balls, and streamers, the concert goers were forced to go home. As most were reluctant to believe the concert was over, the crowd took it upon themselves to stage an acapella version of perfect as they were moved out of the venue. This collective harmony became the perfect ending to a night full of nostalgic pop-punk happiness! Unfortunately the tour only had one more stop after the Houston show, but Simple Plan will continue on the subsequent leg of their tour in Europe starting September 26 in Madrid, Spain.