Long live the kids, especially the weird ones.

The last time we saw We Are The In Crowd, singer Tay Jardine was enacting a pretty brutal revenge plot against a dude who'd done her wrong in the group's "The Best Thing (That Never Happened)” video. Jardine and the rest of the Poughkeepsie, N.Y. five-piece are somewhat more forgiving and understanding in "Long Live The Kids," the latest single from their upcoming Weird Kids album due out next month.

There's a reason we named Jardine one of the 15 Fresh Females Who Will Rule Pop In 2014: She's as uplifting and inspirational on "Love Live The Kids" as she was downright intimidating in the previous video. Pretty sure that's called range!

The song begins as a plaintive piano and strings ballad, with Jardine weaving a tale of small-town friendships gone sour and restrictive expectations that keep people from becoming themselves. "It's all lies to keep you in line," she sings, before the song builds to a boisterous climax of guitar power, closing with a defiant drum-and-vocals sing-along. "You can't tell us no," she shouts in gang harmony.

"Growing up in a small town, it was always difficult to see opportunity. But I had to look past it and stay determined,"  Jardine said in a press release. "'Long Live The Kids' really represents staying true to yourself and holding on to your dreams, even when your surroundings doubt you. Capture that feeling of being a kid -- when you were braver than ever and inspired by a tall tree to climb."

With that attitude, there may be hope for the Weird Kids, after all.

+ Listen to We Are The In Crowd's "Long Live The Kids."

Photo credit: Hopeless Records, Inc.