RecCenter | The Audition

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Champion. Bold and confident, the record title is a reflection of a band meeting their own high expectations. The writing process for Album 2 can be difficult for any band hoping to maintain the magic from their first release. On their second offering for Victory Records, The Audition have avoided the sophomore jinx and produced an irresistible album that is part fighter, part lover, and all Champion.

This Chicago quintet has garnered many definitions of what their sound is: pop, punk, dance, rock – take your pick. Truth is, they’ve earned every one of them, blending smart pop lyrics and grooves with memorable guitar licks and addictive beats. So when deciding how to follow up their 2005 debut Controversy Loves Company, the strategy was simple: stay true to the band’s core rock sound but turn up the heat with ultra catchy melodies and lyrics that reflect the group’s maturation.

With a throng of pop-punk peers on the scene, Champion is the record that will separate The Audition from the cookie-cutter acts springing up around every corner. This sophomore outing finds The Audition bringing back the same danceable rhythms and sing-along choruses, but with a more adult and sensual feel. This new bout of maturity can be attributed to the time that has lapsed between albums. The band recorded Controversy Loves Company at the median age of 19, and it’s apparent with Champion that the band’s songwriting and delivery have ripened with a confessional and intimate sheen. Tracks such as “Warm Me Up” are loaded with insinuations and sultry secrets that reflect their growth in their artistic and personal lives.

“A lot of the songs have a much more soulful and sexual vibe to them. On this record we wanted to try and take the things that make us The Audition and make them better,” says drummer Ryan O’Connor. “We made the rock parts harder, the dance parts ‘dancier’ and the hooks catchier.”