Mehul Shah
Mention Simple Plan and you think of punk rock music. But the 5-member French-Canadian band was in Singapore on Aug 2 to meet the press at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel and promote, LaMB, an original anime production by Animax Asia.
LaMB, Filipino author Carmelo Juinio’s award-winning entry for a scripwriting contest will air on the subscribed channel in February 2009. It will also be the first anime that is screened in high definition (HD).
LaMB tale
The anime is set in an indeterminate time in the future in a desert planet known as Cera. There, “Lamination” is a means of slavery and identification where felons wear laminated suits and are hence known as LaMBs. The story revolves around Jack, a scientist, and Eve, an ex-weapon expert, who find themselves involved in this debatable project and eventually fall in love with each other.
As mentioned in the press conference, the anime is of hybrid origins, having Western plot influences, Japanese-style anime as well as Chinese kung fu elements to it.
The Band Speaks Up
Simple Plan, who was in town to perform for Singfest 2008 a premier live music event in the region, were happy to talk about the anime they will loan their musical talents to.
The guys who have been rocking the music scene with their first album (No Pads, No Helmets…Just Balls) since 2002, are behind “I Can Wait Forever”, that will serve as the title track of LaMB.
What makes it more refreshing is that band members Pierre Bouvier, Chuck Comeau, David Desrosiers, Sebastien Lefebvre and Jeff Stinco will be showcased as an animated band within the anime. “Summertime” by The Click Five another world renowned band, will also be featured in the show.
According to singer Pierre, the song is about love. It talks about the struggle to stay together with a loved one during troubled times. He added that it makes an ideal song for the anime as it accentuates the plot of the whole production.
The music video for the song will be out in December.
Simple Plan says they want to do this not only because they’re fans of anime (guitarist Sebastian says he enjoyed the Final Fantasy series, specifically Advent Children), but because they can reach a wider audience – in this case, lovers of Japanese cartoons. This is Simple Plan’s second dive into the animation industry as they had previously performed the title song of ‘What’s New, Scooby-Doo?’.
On whether the public can expect to see more of such projects in the future, the band was in unanimous agreement. They believe in always striving to make progress. Trying out new ideas is also part of their game plan as seen by their music over the years. The fact that they love embracing new ideas can be seen in their side projects.
One of the better-known examples of these is the Montreal-based Simple Plan Foundation. Its main purpose is to help teenagers who are facing problems as well as families experiencing difficulties. They hope to make it international in the near future.
The first 2 episodes of LaMB will be aired back-to-back for 1 hour in February 2009 across Asia. More information regarding Animax or LaMB can be found at www.animax-asia.com