When Dispatch went on a hiatus about a decade ago, singer-songwriter Chad Stokes Urmston knew he would keep making music, but he wanted to focus more on singing and the guitar rather than jamming and switching instruments. So he founded a new group, State Radio, that combines socially conscious songwriting with punk influences and roots-reggae rhythms. And despite Dispatch’s resurrection, State Radio (above, doing “Rash of Robberies”) are still going strong. The Boston-based trio recently released Rabbit Inn Rebellion(stream it below), and they play Webster Hall on Saturday.
Singer-songwriter Chad Urmston was previously in Dispatch. But he disbanded that group when he wanted to focus more on singing and the guitar rather than jamming and switching instruments. The new band he started, State Radio, combines socially conscious songwriting with roots-reggae rhythms. The Boston trio put out their fourth full-length (and first available on vinyl) album, Let It Go, last September and is currently touring the country. And while the music has an upbeat injection of punk sound, the guys in State Radio are about more than just having a good time. They’ve done work with Oxfam International and have founded their own organization, Calling All Crows, to mobilize “musicians and their fans to promote human rights.” But don’t worry, when you see them on Friday at The Wellmont Theatre, you’ll still have a blast.
(State Radio, above, plays “People to People.”)
