I'm not jumping up and down like a toddler when I say I'm going to miss the band called State Champs in Des Moines on Monday night. First of all, the doors open at 4:30 so making the door opening would require leaving my work at 3, which isn't going to happen. Second of all, the last time I saw the band play left an unimpressive disposition in my brain. Megan and I saw them open for Bayside last fall and this is what I wrote about them in my concert review that was published on dailyvault.com:
The first band on the bill, State Champs, is a five piece hardcore/punk/alternative rock band that play their material with spirit. Cramped onto a small stage, the lead singer was forced to simply jump and down. Some might even be able to make the comparison to a boy band without too much difficulty. While their material brought a smile to my face because they reminded me a lot of my all-time favorite band, Count The Stars, I have to say the band needs to remain as the opening act until they establish the ability to connect with the audience. Telling us that they had driven five hours through the middle of nowhere to get to the venue and that the band had never played in Des Moines before and that we didn’t know any of their songs was just a recipe for not connecting with the audience. I felt bad that that was the only way to “connect” with the crowd. The music was good and the starts and stops were potent. I don’t often feel disconnected from the bands I am watching, but I felt like I was in a separate universe as I watched them.
That said, I've always liked saying I will give a band more than one chance. I often cite a hate / hate relationship with Motley Crue. As I get out the whip for this dead horse, I remember HATING the Motley Crue concert in 1987 when they had Whitesnake blow them away on the "Girls, Girls, Girls" tour. A decade later, I went to see them again, this time with Cheap Trick opening, and I HATED them again! Just for the record, they are on their farewell tour. They play in Des Moines in July and then Moline, IL, in November. I just can't bring myself to go see them. I'd much rather make it a point to listen to "Shout at the Devil" on both of those days.
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