State Champs Celebrate 10 Years of ‘Around The World and Back’ in Los Angeles

On February 6th, Albany, New York pop-punk band State Champs played a very special show at the Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles to close out the 10 year anniversary tour for their iconic album Around The World and Back. With only 8 shows in January and February, it was a can’t-miss tour with stacked lineups changing each night including special guests Cartel, Honey Revenge, Origami Angel, Real Friends, Driveways, Harrison Gordon, Broadside, and Just Friends. Released in 2015, Around The World and Back proved the band was here to stay after their seminal debut album, The Finer Things, reached No. 2 on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart. Their sophomore record quickly became considered one of the best albums of the year (Alternative Press, Rock Sound) and subsequently, one of the most influential pop-punk albums of the decade. Since then, they have released three more albums, toured constantly, and remained evergreen in the pop-punk scene. The band consists of vocalist Derek DiScanio, guitarist and backup vocalist Tyler Szalkowski, bassist and backup vocalist Ryan Scott Graham, and drummer Evan Ambrosio.

Joining State Champs for this final show was Pure Noise Records label-mates Just Friends, an alt-rock band from the Bay Area. With seven members on stage, they have the sound of a pop-punk band mixed with a marching band that is also influenced by funk, jazz, and hip-hop. A lot is going on, but it’s a party on and off stage. The crowd was instantly into it, many of them singing along to their upbeat dance-inducing songs such as “Fever” and “Supersonic.” Vocalists Sam Kless and Brianda “Brond” Goyos Leon make it so easy to feed off their infectious energy and chemistry. From Kless saying “this one goes out to your mom” before a song to doing a cartwheel at the end of their set, Just Friends is not a band you forget about after seeing them. One of the most fun parts of their live show is hearing the brass instruments live. Towards the end of their set, Brond led the crowd in a chant about being intentional and voting with their dollars, telling everyone to say it next time they feel powerless. They finished their set and threw multiple bean burritos (I’m almost positive) from Taco Bell into the crowd (they were wrapped).

Next up was Origami Angel, a rock duo formed in 2016 from Washington D.C. While singer and guitarist Ryland Heagy and drummer Pat Doherty don’t need much space on the stage, they make up for it with their big sound. The band was founded in 2016 and gained wider attention by 2019 with album releases Somewhere City and Gami Gang; their sound can be described as somewhere in between easycore and emo. There were quite a few audience members wearing Origami Angel shirts, and there was more singing along and crowd surfing than usually expected for an opener, which is a testament to the band’s continually growing impact. Memorable songs from the set included “Back to Life” and “Wretched Trajectory.”

The final opener was Honey Revenge, a pop rock band from down the street in Los Angeles. In a full circle moment, Honey Revenge opened for State Champs for the first time in 2022 in Anaheim (I was there!), when they would’ve been considered the local band, and now here they are as direct support in their hometown. The band is a duo, consisting of vocalist Devin Papadol and guitarist Donny Lloyd. While Papadol usually sports bright pink or purple hair, Lloyd always has a smile on their face, and the band’s stage outfits are consistently coordinated, including their touring members. They incorporate synchronized high kicks in nearly every song, and Papadol unfailingly sings and dances her heart out with pure joy, while somehow never stumbling in her tall chunky platform boots. They played an unreleased song, “Hot Commodity,” as well as “Poison Apple Baby,” the lead single of their upcoming second album. During “Habitual,” Papadol cheerfully directed the crowd to sing back “you’re a little bitch you know” to her throughout the chorus. Papadol joined the audience in the pit for “Worst Apology,” a circle forming to jump around with her to the catchy song. To finish off the set, they played “Are You Impressed?” and “Airhead,” a fan favorite that is always exceptional live.

When it was finally time, State Champs burst onto the stage with the first track from Around The World and Back, “Eyes Closed,” to deafening cheers all around the packed theater. Not even three songs into the album and confetti cannons were already fired off, the crowd going crazy. They proceeded to play the whole album in order, banger after banger, only slowing down for the title track, bringing out Devin Papadol to sing Ansley Newman’s part. Then, they kept going, along with the seemingly endless crowd surfers. The audience was singing along to every word, and that’s not an exaggeration. Ryan Scott Graham was busting moves left and right while Derek DiScanio was hyping up the crowd with his jumps and encouraging crowd surfers. Hearing songs that are rarely on the setlist like “Back and Forth,” “Tooth and Nail,” and deluxe edition bonus track “Hurry Up and Wait,” was especially satisfying for the die-hard crowd. DiScanio thanked everyone for coming to this very special show for them and expressed how meaningful it was that everyone cared so much about ATWAB (and the band) after a decade.

They took a short break, came back with less clothing on than before, and were ready to keep rocking. The rest of the set was an exhilarating compilation of their greatest hits, plus recent single “Common Sense,” from the deluxe edition of their self-titled fifth album, released in 2024. Anyone that has been to a Champs show knows what happens when “Elevated” comes on, and DiScanio told the audience to turn up the crowd surfing to 100. One thing about the Wiltern is that it has general admission and a balcony, but the pit is not just one big area. The floor actually has multiple tiered general admission areas sloping upwards that can be roamed freely, separated by steps or a ramp. Usually when there is crowd surfing at this particular venue, it’s only in the pit directly in front of the stage, where there is a barricade and security personnel to catch people.

However, that is not the case when State Champs is around. Never have I ever seen so much crowd surfing at the Wiltern – not just in the front – but in each tiered section, so much so that security was positioned in front of each area to catch the surfers from a nasty fall. DiScanio said at the end that they broke a crowd surfing record at the venue (allegedly), hopefully whoever was counting lets everyone know the number! They finished their set with certified party anthem “Everybody But You,” with DiScanio and Graham tag-teaming Ben Barlow’s part of the song. More confetti was blasted into the air, and the crowd gave every last bit of their energy. After over a decade of going to State Champs shows, they have never gotten old, but somehow, they keep getting better.