State Champs at Upstate Concert Hall in Clifton, NY

State Champs, Against the Current, With Confidence, Don Broco and Young Culture
Upstate Concert Hall in Clifton Park, NY – 5/13/17
Words and photos by Peter Jones-Torregrosa

State Champs’ headlining tour rolled through their hometown on May 13^th. While the band has said that this will be their last tour before taking a break to write and record a new full-length, they showed little signs of slowing up. Fans braved the rainy weather to wait in line to support the band they have watched grow for so long. Many fans arrived with signs reading “Welcome Home State Champs”, as this was the second to last date of a full U.S. tour. Derek DiScanio (State Champs’ lead singer) mentioned how he remembered growing up and sneaking into Upstate Concert Hall because they were too broke to afford tickets; the very same venue that they were now headlining.

The hometown heroes brought along a talented group of bands, including Against the Current (who also are local to the Albany, NY area) and international friends in Don Broco and With Confidence. The show featured a local opener named, “Young Culture”, who did not seem to let the big stage and full venue intimidate them. Derek joined Young Culture on stage for their last song, Bedroom Floor, which he is featured on.

Against the Current also earned an honorable mention on the night. Their unique sound centered around vocalist Chrissy Costanza, who’s stage presence was truly second to none. She seemed to be flying around the stage, while her voice filled the room. Although I had never listened to Against the Current before, I was absolutely floored by Chrissy’s vocal range and control.

However, the second State Champs took the stage, it was clear how much support they had from their hometown. From the first note of ‘Remedy’, through their 20-song setlist, the crowd was in a frenzy of singing, crowd-surfing and dancing. The headliner treated the crowd to the acoustic bonus track, ‘Stick Around’, off of their debut EP from 2010. State Champs also played songs off of their new deluxe edition of ‘Around the World and Back’, so their set truly impressed fans both new and seasoned. State Champs’ double encore of ‘Critical’ and ‘Secrets’ was the perfect ending to their lengthy set. While no band will ever be able to give dedicated fans enough to hold them over to the next show, State Champs certainly put on a performance to be remembered.

Young Culture