State Radio play the Calvin Theatre in Northampton on Halloween, Saturday, October 31st at 8PM. 5K road race at 2PM for benefit of Sudanese women.

For STATE RADIO the music and the message have always been inextricably linked. Like Rage Against The Machine and System Of A Down before them, State Radio roll up their sleeves as they practice what they preach, whether it’s riding bikes to gigs to support Bikes Not Bombs, hosting food drives in conjunction with Rock For A Remedy, or playing shows to raise money for the Learning Center for the Deaf. How’s Your News?*, a film project created by Stokes while working at a camp for adults with disabilities, was picked up by South Park’s Trey Parker and Matt Stone for a run on HBO and MTV.

The Band Before: Stokes’ previous band, the roots rock outfit Dispatch, disbanded in 2002, but have reunited three times, the most notable being a three-night, sold out run at Madison Square Garden in 2007 to raise funds and awareness for poverty-stricken Zimbabwe.

The Records: State Radio’s first album, Us Against The Crown, introduced listeners to the band’s raw, pop-punk sound. Their second album, Year Of The Crow, was recorded in the UK and produced by Tchad Blake (Peter Gabriel, Pearl Jam, Soul Coughing).The album pushed the group’s socio-political motivations and broadened their sonic palette with bigger guitars and more diverse instrumentation. But the bridge between both records has always been Stokes’ transcendental storytelling, which continues to mature and evolve on their new album Let It Go.

The Northampton 5K Road Race: State Radio and Calling All Crows, the group’s platform for social action, have joined with Amnesty International and Oxfam America to organize 5K road races to raise money and awareness to help protect women against violence in Sudan. WRSI The River co-presents the race which takes place on Saturday, October 31^st at 2:00PM before State Radio's concert at the Calvin Theater that evening. The race kicks off at the Courthouse on Gothic St. and runs through downtown Northampton, Smith College, and Child's Memorial Park. Info on the run is here.

The Main Event: The Concert: State Radio plays the Calvin Theatre at 8PM, Saturday, October 31^st. Tickets are available at the Northampton Box Office, 413-586-8686. Online at IHEG.com.

*(You can rent “How’s Your News” at Pleasant Street Video in Northampton at the top of the stairs in Documentaries.)