O2 Institute Birmingham, 26th Februrary 2025
If there’s one thing State Champs can do, it’s deliver an exemplary pop-punk show. So when the lights in Birmingham’s O2 Institute dim and a thumping, building instrumental track blasts from the speakers, the cheer that erupts from the crowd is nothing short of deafening. The members walk out one by one, waving to fans below as they take their places on stage. With a 23-song setlist to get through, there isn’t a moment to spare. The band dive straight into ‘Silver Cloud’ from their latest album, the eponymous State Champs. Already primed to mosh, dance, and jump, the crowd explodes into motion the moment the first note of ‘Silver Cloud’ rings out. It doesn’t matter that ‘Silver Cloud’ only came out a few months ago. With the reception it receives, you would be forgiven for thinking it was a long-term fan favourite.
But it’s not just the fans having the best Wednesday night of their lives – the band are, too
From then on, there’s no stopping either the band or the fans. ‘Losing Myself’ receives an equally effusive reception, and the nostalgic ‘Mine Is Gold’ beckons booming singalongs of “Your heart is black and mine is gold!” during its deliciously angsty choruses. The fast tempo of ‘Outta My Head’ from 2023’s Kings of the New Age fuels the bouncing crowd, and this is where the mosh pits truly take shape.
“We’re about to make this the best Wednesday night of your lives,” declares vocalist Derek DiScanio before launching into a medley of ‘Perfect Score’, ‘Frozen’, and ‘Fake It’. Judging by people’s ecstatic expressions, he might be right. But it’s not just the fans having the best Wednesday night of their lives – the band are, too. DiScanio, with his usual vigour, is jumping up and down from the small platform at the front of the stage, while next to him, guitarist Tyler Szalkowski and bassist Ryan Scott Graham are jumping around in circles, as if on overdrive. Behind them, Evan Ambrosio’s robust drumming ties the songs together.
The band dedicate ‘Elevated’, to the fans that had been there since day one
‘The Constant’ and its earworm of a chorus are another highlight of the show, as is the playful ‘Tight Grip’. When a band release a new album, it’s difficult to know how the songs will go down live. Tonight proves that State Champs need not worry, with fans eager to prove they love the new songs just as much as the old ones.
The band dedicate ‘Elevated’, to the fans that had been there since day one. And with every single person in the room singing along to its chorus, the moment becomes a joyous collective celebration of how far State Champs have come since.
And if fans thought the show’s first part was intense, nothing could have prepared them for the encore. During ‘Everybody but You’, a rogue shoe flies onto the stage before DiScanio hurls it back into the melee below. The mass is so engrossed that it doesn’t even matter that Neck Deep’s Ben Barlow isn’t there to perform his feature on the song. Finally, ‘Secrets’ closes off the set, and the crowd’s realisation that this is the last track wakes up anyone who might have been in a stupor, with its singsongy verses and vindictive chorus encouraging a 1500-person singalong, fans almost drowning out the band in their wake.
And with one final “But it’s too late for me, now I’m as good as gone” rounding off ‘Secrets’, the show comes to a bittersweet end. With a wave, the band walk off on stage to the sound of Chappell Roan’s ‘HOT TO GO’. But instead of feeling upset about the show’s end, grinning faces make their way out into the chilly night. What’s more, State Champs are no strangers to the UK. Whether it be on their own headline tours, playing Slam Dunk, or opening for other acts, rest assured, the New York pop-punkers will be back tearing up UK stages before long.
Words and image: Sophie Flint Vázquez
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