From Albany, New York, pop-punk band State Champs have grown their career by ten fold and it’s amazing to see how much they’ve achieved since making music. I remember stumbling upon their first record The Finer Things and discovering the pop-punk stars in the making. While it hasn’t been easy being constantly on the road and figuring out life through music, their passion for what they do is evident in their latest documentary (directed by Elliot Ingham), Around The World And Back. Not only is it titled the same as their sophomore record, it showcases the journey the five-piece have gone through and the reality of how they came to being a well-renowned name in the pop-punk scene.
Lead singer Derek Discanio explains the meaning of their sophomore record at the start of the documentary saying, “When it came time to writing this new record, we were just always on the road. So, we didn’t know what it was like to really write a whole album while we were touring, which is where the idea of the album comes.”
He continues. “We didn’t want to make a concept album – that’s far from what Around The World And Back is, but the fact that we literally were around the world while we were getting things together, demoing songs. I was writing lyrics in Australia, there’s ones I look back – there’s lyrics where I remember exactly where I wrote that line. Whether it was in Australia or Japan or the UK or something, that’s what’s kinda cool. It almost seems kind of cheesy. We’re literally calling it Around The World And Back because we were around the world and back.”
You can watch the full DVD, which is now streaming via the Pure Noise Records YouTube:
Wholesome Tapes 