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State Champs have graced us with another hard-hitting record just four years after their last full-length LP. Kings of the New Age; the anthem of the past, the now and perhaps even the future. It’s a solidifying moment in this is what was meant to happen through every trail and tribulation. This aspect is placed within the first track with lyrics such as, “Right then we were right there/ the bright lights in the night air/ we got there through the nightmare/ on our own, it’s safe to say we’re here to stay.”
“Here to Stay” kicks off the record on notion that despite everything that has happened, this is who they are now and there isn’t a chance of backing down. The last two years have been moments of unpredictability, nobody knew which move to make and if the ones they did make would turn out to be anything worthwhile. State Champs they knew that this could be a moment to push themselves further into the scene. They’ve been the front runners for quite some time now and with Kings of the New Age, they have shown that they could be the band that upcomers can look up to and strive to be like.
There comes a time when you have to sit back and reflect on yourself and how you can better your own being and this comes into the play within the next few tracks which were also released as singles leading up to the release of the record. “Eventually”, “Everybody but You” featuring Ben Barlow (Neck Deep), and “Outta My Head” are the tracks of getting out of something that was toxic and coming to the realization that perhaps, you do deserve something better. The thematics of the album coincide into bettering oneself and after everything that has happened within the world, we’ve all taken time and reflected on what we want to and who we want to become. With that comes with letting go of relationships, personal and romantic.
Which then leads into the fifth track on the record, “Fake It” a song that instantly brought in the feeling of “Easy Enough” off the bands record The Finer Things. It’s a song that gives you the feeling of hope and that throughout whatever is going on, you can make it through and will see the light at the end of tunnel. With lyrics such as: “We’re more than the words we say in the end/ We bend, and we break so there’s something to mend” and “We’re still reminded/ can’t be divided/ That’s when you know/ We made it.” It’s one that plays into the theme of the new age and coming out of whichever situation you’ve found yourself in even if it doesn’t feel like it could be possible.
Through every turn we make throughout life, there is always the possibility of something better happening to us and in that it can be the people we allow to love us and come into our lives and throughout time they become apart of us, half of who we are. “Half Empty” featuring Chrissy Costanza (Against the Current) brings in that aspect. “You were the one after all/ Like when you said to me/ I’m here to tear down the walls”. When you hear songs like this mixed into ones of leaving a relationship you automatically assume it be a breakup record, but this is one isn’t. It’s the recognition that relationships whether personal or romantic have two sides. The one where things are exactly how you envisioned them to be; the picture-perfect hallmark esque of it all and then there are ones when you realize that this can’t be anything that could possibly be healthy for anyone involved.
The seventh track on the record “Just Sound” begins to play into that and it’s given within the first line of the song. While we know this isn’t a one theme album, there will still be the reminiscence of what was, the odes to the pasts of personal self’s, relationships and things done perhaps over facetime which is heavily implicated in this track. “Act Like That” featuring Mitchell Tenpenny plays back into the romantic relationships and how being with that one person could make everything better. There are moments with that person where the world is silenced, and your only focus is on them. Having Tenpenny in on this song was a perfect edition with how the lyrics match up perfectly to the country twang that he was able to provide.
There is something in how for awhile we were able to step back and look at the lives we were living, “Where Were You” plays into that aspect of when everything came to a halt and we were forced to sit back and reflect on who we were and what we were doing, if there was any point to it. From a personal perspective it’s a song that makes you think of what happened in order for you to be able move forward and then in turn placing into the romantic aspect of your life. “Where were you when the world stopped turning?/ Was I a fool for ever thinking I could get you stay?/ Been thinking we were all that/ Still on the fast track/ Guess I’m the one who’s caught up/ by getting carried away”. While everything seems fine in the moment, most times you need to be forced to step back and realize that perhaps not everything is as sugar coated as it seemed to be.
The last two songs on the record cement that. “Sundress” featuring Four Year Strong is one on the notion of attempting to cling onto what was and in hopes that it could be enough to keep going. “Some Minds Don’t Change” is realization that those small moments can’t be the things to keep it all alive. To move forward and come to the acceptance that there are people that are meant to be left behind for you to be able to move forward. This is the new age for us all and State Champs have been able to give us the soundtrack of the summer as well roll down our windows and start to coast on down the road and forget everything we leave behind.
The band is currently on their UK/EU tour but to find anything State Champs related, their social media is as follows: State_Champs and statechampsny.com
Check out State Champs new record Kings of the New Age on Spotify now!
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