| Kings of the New Age | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | State Champs |
| Cover: | State_Champs_-_Kings_of_the_New_Age.jpg |
| Genre: | Pop punk |
| Length: | 35:03 |
| Label: | Pure Noise |
| Producer: | Drew Fulk |
| Prev Title: | Living Proof |
| Prev Year: | 2018 |
| Next Title: | State Champs |
| Next Year: | 2024 |
Kings of the New Age is the fourth studio album from American pop punk band State Champs. The album was released on May 13, 2022 and marks the longest gap between albums for the band following the release of 2018's Living Proof. It is the band's first album without rhythm guitarist Tony Diaz after his departure in March 2020.
In an interview with Alternative Press, Derek DiScanio stated that production of the album had already started before the pandemic. While the band was in the stage of making writing trips to Los Angeles and making instrumental demos, they were introduced to Drew Fulk, who would end up becoming the producer and main engineer on the album. Derek praised Drew's attitude and work ethic, reflecting that the band had come up with over 30 song ideas and that Drew had helped enhance and combine them.[1] Four of the tracks on the album feature collaborations with other artists, giving the album the most features out of any of the band's previous releases.
On February 23, 2022, the band announced that their fourth album would be titled "Kings of the New Age" and would be released on May 13, 2022.[2] On the same day, they released the single "Everybody But You" featuring Ben Barlow from Neck Deep. The album's artwork and full track list was also revealed.
The album received mostly positive reviews from critics, many of whom praised the tracks featuring other artists, most notably, "Half Empty". In a review for Substream Magazine, Eric Riley reflected on band's growth over the past decade and complimented the choruses on the album, stating "The choruses are slick and stick on the first try".[3] Jake Richardson from Kerrang! gave the album a four out of five and expressed that he felt the band was maintaining their sound but that the album had "the songs required to take them to the next level".[4] Although Luke Nuttall from The Soundboard described the band's recent work as "just ordinary", he went on to write that the album was a "snap back into focus".[5]
State Champs
Additional musicians
Production