Artist To Watch: Are You In With We Are The In Crowd?
If you've ever felt like one of the weird kids, just wishing you could be in with the in crowd, then you're in luck -- well, at least if the "in crowd" you were thinking of was We Are The In Crowd. Forget about those plastic-perfect popular people, anyway.
Fresh off a summer spent partying on the Vans Warped Tour, WATIC are our latest Artists To Watch. Now, the members of this Poughkeepsie pop-punk band are set to kick into gear once again with a tour supporting New Found Glory starting October 3, plus an iTunes spotlight on their 2014 single, "Manners."
On the cusp of all that awesomeness, allow us to introduce you to this kick-ass group -- at least those of you who don't already have all of their albums and swag and posters and discarded water bottles arranged into a shrine in the back of your closet.
Who They Are
The New York state quintet -- made up of lead vocalist Taylor Jardine, vocalist/guitarist Jordan Eckes, guitarist Cameron Hurley, bassist Mike Ferri and drummer Rob Chianelli -- were officially born in 2009, and their debut EP, Guaranteed To Disagree, dropped a year later.
It was their first full-length effort, 2011's Best Intentions, however, that rocketed them into our pop-punk hearts -- oh yeah, and their bust-em-up tours with the likes of All Time Low, Mayday Parade, Yellowcard and Never Shout Never definitely helped, too. Best Intentions seemed a fortuitous name, as those intentions soon paid off. The record debuted in the Billboard Top 200 and landed WATIC on the covers of magazines like Alternative Press, as well as at big fest gigs like Reading and Leeds.
The strength of the release was no fluke, though, as the band's sophomore album, Weird Kids, was released earlier this year with equally excellent results. Guess we knew what we were talking about when we named Tay one of the amazing women who would rule pop in 2014, huh?
“There’s been a lot of learning, a lot of growing up together," Jardine said of the album. "We still fight like children, but we lean on each other to overcome tough situations. This record has a lot to do with what we’ve learned; there are songs about us and who we want to be and how we want to be identified as people.”
Why You Should Listen To Them
Picture this: Your boyfriend/girlfriend just betrayed you. Your life is spinning utterly out of control. You're wearing your best stompin' boots and you're grounded and stuck in an outmoded childhood bedroom covered in stickers, pink paint and lost dreams, so stompin' at a show is out of the question.
OK, do you have that image in your mind? Or, even worse, are you currently living it?
Well, mash your headphones over your ears and crank Weird Kids, because Taylor and friends understand your pain. Also, the jams are incredibly fun and infinitely easy to dance to -- just in case you're not into angsting.
What You Should Listen To
Obviously, you should hit up this band's entire discography right now, but for the sake of brevity we're going to suggest you immediately check out "Manners" and "The Best Thing (That Never Happened)."
"Manners" highlights the amazing vocal interplay between Taylor and Jordan -- it's like that song in "Grease" where Danny and Sandy sing about the beach and cars, but way, way more hardcore. (I don't think Danny would have ever told Sandy, "Keep your mouth shut!")
The unbridled, spitting insults in the jam (almost unnoticeably studded within the gorgeous melody) definitely make this one a shout-along-er. Lucky for you, we have a free download of the track -- click the downward-pointing arrow button in the SoundCloud player above -- so start warming up your shout-y muscles.
"The Best Thing (That Never Happened)" is -- surprise! -- another breakup-themed song. Sample lyric: "I hope you're home the day I tear down the walls/ I won't settle, settle, settle/ You are never going to hold me down." A good message, that one. Clap along as you grin through the pain.
Fun Fact
Now, it's time for a fun, insider-y fact about We Are The In Crowd: The five-piece initially called themselves The In Crowd, but they changed their name to avoid confusion with a Jamaican band by the same name. I feeeeeel like a collaboration is in order?
What's Next
Aside from that dream collaboration that will never happen, what's next for WATIC? How about touring, touring and, oh yeah, more touring. Will your future involve hitting up one of those tour stops? See you there, weird kid.
