Fresh off touring with All Time Low, 5 Seconds of Summer, and their own East Coast headlining tour, Albany pop-punk band, State Champs, are gearing up for their fall tour with The Wonder Years and Motion City Soundtrack (and upcoming world tour with Neck Deep) with their sophomore LP, “Around The World and Back”.
Two years since their first album, “The Finer Things” came out, State Champs is still pop punk in their purest form. Still as relatable as they were in their first release, the band leans more on the pop side of the genre while flexing their writing skills and musicianship.
“I don’t want to use ‘mature’, because that makes it sound like an indie-rock record, but it’ll definitely be more well-written,” says lead guitarist Tyler Szalkowski in the February issue of Alternative Press. This already proves true with the album’s singles, “Secrets” and “All You Are is History”. Both songs are about independence and finally letting go of toxic relationships. Those two things have always been big themes in the band’s music, but this time around, they write with more conviction in their lyrics.
The album opens strong with “Eyes Closed”, another song about those major themes with their signature sound that highlights every instrument. Third track, “Losing Myself”, is both optimistic while realistic, offering a message of hope in saying risk and vulnerability can be a positive force in anyone’s life. One of the catchiest songs on the album, “Perfect Score”, a poppier song about the beginnings of a relationship, is followed up by break up song, “All Or Nothing”. The latter track is poignantly written and highlights the struggles of a long distance relationship.
“Shape Up” is anthem-like and comes in with a heavy guitar emphasis and fun use of gang vocals while being about defending yourself and not having to explain your life to anyone. “Back and Forth” focuses on relationships and self-discovery, making itself one of the most relatable songs on the album.
The title track, “Around The World and Back”, is a nice highlight for the album. A slower love song that displays an acoustic guitar and singer of Jule Vera, Ansley Newman, shows a softer side of the band. It’s reminiscent of their most recent EP, “The Acoustic Things”. It shows mastery of their writing and strength in vulnerability and love.
“Breaking Ground” shows the push-and-pull of a ruined relationship and figuring out how to start over, with a slightly darker undertone than the rest of the songs on the album. “Tooth and Nail” rounds out the album, running away from someone and towards a new sense of self.
The whole band shines throughout the album with all members being shown off in turn with Derek DiScanio’s distinctive voice. They all complement each other and come together to make one of the best pop punk albums of the year. Give them a listen and there’s no way you won’t end up headbanging to their whole album.