Champion is The Audition's second full-length album. It was released in the USA and the UK on January 22, 2008 by Victory Records. It has roughly sold 75,000 copies since its release in 2008.
Champion was announced on December 19, 2007,[5] and released on January 22, 2008.[6] In January and February, the band headlined the PacTour, with support from Envy on the Coast, Danger Radio and Another Day Late. This was followed by a two-week tour in the UK.[7] A music video was released for "Warm Me Up" on February 6.[8] Following appearances at the South by Southwest and South by So What?! festivals, the band headlined the Spring Break 08 tour in the US from mid-March until early May, with support from Hit the Lights, Every Avenue, the Morning Light and Kiros.[9] In April, the band appeared at the Bamboozle Left festival.[10] After this tour, the band participated in Warped Tour from late June until mid-August.[9] In December, the band supported All Time Low on their Christma-Hanu-Kwanza tour in the US.[11]
Critical reception[]
Champion was received more positively by critics than its predecessor, Controversy Loves Company. Jason McNeil from AllMusic wrote "Champion is a rather uneven affair throughout the record. Perhaps the highlight of the album is when The Audition slows things down for the melancholic, slow-building "What Gets You Through the Night" that comes up very strong, resembling a tight, punchy cross between Maroon 5 and U2. Another sleeper pick is the sparkling "Make It Rain" Overall, The Audition pass the audition, but not with flying colors." Bfhurricane from sputnikmusic.com Gave the album a 3 out 5 and praised Seth Johnson's guitar riffs and solos, bassist Joe Lussa's basslines, Danny Stevens's vocals stating that "you can’t help but to admire how much spirit he’s putting in to his songs. He’s a singer that you can tell really does what he does for the love of it, inspired by real emotion and a desire to let it all out." Later on the review he wrote " There’s not a single song on this album that I wouldn’t call enjoyable. However, the album as a whole really doesn’t show much diversity. While there’s a plethora of mentionable riffs and vocal hooks, there is a lack of musical maturity throughout Champion. They’re not tied to any style, timeline, and they don’t have much of a reputation to lose with experimentation. Which is what this album is – a fun experiment testing the creativity of the musicians of The Audition. I can safely say that there’s not a single bad moment on the album, but it’s nothing more than a combination of a bunch of good riffs and melodies focused around the same emotions. The album as a whole is colorful, funky, and fresh, but still a little immature. The Audition is still a young band, and with time they’re going to mature into some serious hard-hitters with some great singles, But until then, however, they’ll make a great supporting act for the bigger bands."[12]Exclaim!'s Sari Delmar rated the album "Unfavourable" stating "while Chicago's sweethearts have refined their sugar-coated vocals and stepped it up to a whole new level of poppy-ness, they seem to have toned down the originality. And it is unfortunate because now instead of sounding fresh and rejuvenated, they just sound out of ideas. "Hell to Sell could have easily slid onto Cobra Starship's new album, while "Edinboro could have been written by 30 Seconds to Mars. When things do get a bit exciting, as on "Warm Me Up, you'll just want to go listen to Panic! At the Disco's A Fever You Can't Sweat Out. So where exactly does that leave the Audition? In your kid sister's record collection right next to Fall Out Boy".[13]
Track listing[]
No.
Title
Length
1.
"Basbhat"
2:42
2.
"Warm Me Up"
3:32
3.
"Heaven for the Weather"
3:09
4.
"Edinboro"
3:11
5.
"Hell to Sell"
3:48
6.
"Ether"
3:50
7.
"What Gets You Through the Night"
4:24
8.
"Shady Business"
3:21
9.
"Make It Rain"
3:10
10.
"Have Gun, Will Travel"
3:05
Total length:
33:50
Personnel[]
The Audition
Danny Stevens - Lead Vocals, Piano on "What Gets You Through The Night"
Seth Johnson - Lead Guitar (Guitar Solo on "Warm Me Up" and "Have Gun, Will Travel"), Acoustic Guitar,[14] Backing Vocals
[1]
