by Dan Emmons
Walking into the Electric Factory Wednesday night was a scene all too familiar to this former self-proclaimed metal head. The diminished chords and raunchy breakdowns filled my heart with glee as I inched closer to the pit. Ah yes, I remember what it is like to go to one of these shows.
The opening acts of the Tracing Back Roots Tour were Dangerkids, The Color Morale, Chunk! No, Captain Chunk (by far the most creatively named band I have ever seen) and veteran act Silverstein. These bands warmed the crowd up to the perfect temperature of sweaty and bruised.
We Came As Romans (photo credit Natalie Bisignano)
When We Came As Romans hit the stage heavy, got the crowd moving and wasted no time utilizing the platform their road crew assembled at the front of the stage. The backdrop was their album cover art from Tracing Back Roots by Paul Romano (Chiodos, Mastadon) which incorporates elements of past album covers in a twisted light. Each band member had a portrait backdrop in front of their gear and the stage was illuminated in accordance to these images with white, purple, and green lights and of course, the smoke machine. WCAR played tracks from To Plant a Seed, Understanding What We’ve Grown to Be, and their most recent release Tracing Back Roots and even their cover of “Glad You Came” off of the Pop Goes Punk Soundtrack which really got the crowd into it.
I have to say that I was immediately impressed with this band due to their energy and ability to play in the pocket. That is my biggest fear- going to hear a metal, metalcore, screamo, and any other associated metal genre that kids make up these days, playing in the pocket. Their guitars, brought to you by Joshua Moore, Lou Cotton, and bassist Andy Glass were so tight you would think they were playing right off the record. The energy was certainly maximized by front-men David Stephens and Kyle Pavone, but more importantly their crowd control was on point. Stopping to portray their message of overcoming adversity and staying true to yourself and your morals. However, I have to give it up to my man Eric Choi on the drums! This guy was all over his kit while throwing in the signature stick tricks and killing the double bass. For their encore I am pretty sure he appeared out of thin air to jump on the kit and immediately start rocking.
When it comes down to it, they rocked the house. Great set, great band, and most worth it show in a while.
