It’s a Pop Punk revival, and its crowd surfing, moshing, angst-filled ways are here to stay. State Champs, the five-man band from Albany, New York, brought back a little pop punk to Soma last week for We Are The In Crowd’s Reunion Tour which will go around the U.S. this spring.
It’s as if our generation’s pop punk has evolved into newer and more relatable forms. The music is growing with us, and the revival lives on.
State Champs began their journey in 2010, with the release of “Overslept” and tour collaborations with bands such as Hit the Lights and New Found Glory. Touring is important in the music industry, and State Champs did their job by gaining experience and building on it to produce some of their best work featured in their recently released album, “The Finer Things.” They are now touring with the reunited We Are The In Crowd, William Beckett, Set It Off and Candy Hearts. State Champs has developed a stage presence much like that of their peers. It’s not simply about the ardent lyrics anymore; it becomes about expression, and releasing it in the forms of stage-diving, moshing, and even by telling the person next to you that you like his nose ring. It’s the type of performance where the lead singer yells into the microphone and lets the audience finish his lyrics. It’s pop punk.
There is a sense of tradition in every pop punk show involving the people, the attitude and the love for music. It fuels the fire in the listener’s mind and builds the bond with the music and our connection to it. State Champs will be back in San Diego along with the rest of the Warped Vans Tour crew this summer on June 25.
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Photos by Kristian Carreon, staff photographer
