All things considered, compared to many of their peers that emerged at the end of the 2000s, We Came As Romans have done pretty well for themselves. Having explored new styles and switched their sound enough to gain new fans as well as not alienate the old ones, that kind of effort is more than many other bands can say. And it was on the metalcore band’s third album, Tracing Back Roots, where the stars aligned in what was probably their biggest album to date.
This is especially true when you consider the number of post-hardcore / metalcore bands who have ever had an album debut in the top 10 of the Billboard 200. Spoiler alert: there aren’t many. One listen to Tracing Back Roots, and anyone who’s even a casual fan of We Came As Romans can likely understand why this was the album that catapulted them toward a much larger audience.
Relying on fewer instances of screaming and more melodic singing from both vocalists Dave Stephens as well as the late Kyle Pavone, it smartly kicks things off with the album’s explosive title track. Tracing Back Roots’ 1a themes of hope, positivity, and overcoming adversity is par for the course for WCAR. The difference is they’re filtered through popular and more melodic song structures – but unlike the self-titled album that followed up this record, it’s not specifically aimed with more radio friendly play involved. It also elevates already good songs like “Fade Away” and the Aaron Gillespie-assisted “I Survive” into classic ones, and that’s much of the album’s identity as a whole.
