State Champs - The Finer Things (10 year anniversary)

When we’re talking about the modern pop punk scene, it would be pretty hard to imagine it without Albany, New York’s State Champs. Kicking it since 2010, the band are widely known for being one of the most consistent bands in the genre from album to album; some would even say they are *gasp* GENERIC. Admittedly this is a statement that could be levelled at most pop punk bands to some degree, and while State Champs have clearly got their songwriting methods nailed to a T, the result of that is an instantly recognisable sound that harks back to the early ’00s era with a fresh twist and a distinctly modern day sense of adept musicianship. This all began with 2013’s The Finer Things.

Released on October 8th 2013 by legendary label Pure Noise Records, the album had sold 24,000 copies by 2015 (up to date figures are unknown) and racked up millions of streams on Spotify. 

The buzz for this album was unreal back in the day, but I actually think the praise this album gets can be encapsulated perfectly by the social media posts of people who have found and photographed themselves on the street depicted on the album cover (Hudson & Lark, Albany btw). How many albums aside from Abbey Road can say they’ve had that impact? Certainly not many in pop punk, that’s for sure. 

So why is this album so beloved by fans of the band and the genre to this day? Well for a start, the songs are still classics. Songs like “Simple Existence”, “Remedy”, and of course the immortal “Elevated” are setlist staples for the band to this day, for good reason. There’s an energy captured in the performances and production on this album that’s unlike anything the band has made since: the complex yet propulsive drumming, the fizzy and bodacious guitar sound, and of course the outstanding lyrics and vocal performance of leading man Derek DiScanio. All these elements line up perfectly to create one heck of an album that front to back has no dull moments. 

Reportedly written entirely in Derek’s bedroom, the album was actually produced in the spiritual home of pop punk, Southern California, by Sam Pura (then best known for his work with fellow pop punk revivalists The Story So Far). As this was the band’s only album to be produced by Pura, I think it’s no coincidence that this album has a raw aggression to it that hasn’t been matched since by the band and the various production collaborators they’ve worked with. All the songs hit like a freight train, speeding along with no filler moments or introspection. There’s no ballads, no token acoustic song, no attempt to be anything other than the most maximalist version of modern pop punk. Some would say this album lacks variety as a result, however I think the album has more of a definitive identity as a result of this singular vision by band and producer. 

The music video for lead single “Elevated” perhaps shows the vibe they were aiming for better than any retrospective could. Shot at Warped Tour (RIP) the video features not one, not two but SIX crowdsurfers… in the first 15 seconds, just so you know what we’re getting into here. The video also shows the band hanging with their pop punk band bros in Man Overboard and the aforementioned TSSF, dual wielding Monster Energy drinks like a Call Of Duty pro, hustling T-shirts at the merch table, moving gear to and from the stage… it’s remarkable how one video can remind you so much of a single era in such an effective way. It really shows the grind and work associated with being a band on the road, but in a positive way that results in a timeless performance and amazing memories for all involved. 

While bands like Real Friends, The Wonder Years and TSSF were lyrically dealing in more mature subject matter, it’s clear from this one video that State Champs were all about celebrating the (ahem) finer things that they could extract from the pop punk world. While they’ve had their serious moments over the years you can always be assured that a SC album is going to be a whole lot of fun, and nowhere is this more apparent than on The Finer Things. 

Around the time of its release, the band were playing slots on tours that would make pop punk fans weep if they were announced today: supporting New Found Glory in June followed by a tour with Cartel, then with The Wonder Years, A Loss For Words and ROAM the following May. That is what the kids today would call “stacked”. If that wasn’t enough, later that year they went on the Warped Tour AGAIN followed by the Pure Noise tour where they played alongside Handguns and Forever Came Calling. I have it on good authority that this is when worldwide pizza sales peaked.