5 Essential We Came As Romans Non-Singles

Before you read the rest of this piece listing five essential We Came As Romans non-singles in chronological order, we implore you to listen to the band's most recent 2022 effort Darkbloom this very minute in full. Not only is this record a ten-track melodic punch in the gut, it is also the band's first LP without their singer, the late Kyle Pavone. Ready? Great! Finish? Even better! Now read below for one song from each of the band's first five full-length studio albums:

“An Ever-Growing Wonder” from To Plant A Seed (2009)

Two lead vocalists in a band with one on saccharine and one on screams was very common in the late-00s and early-2010s but few executed as well as Michigan's We Came as Romans. The band's debut full-length studio album To Plant A Seed is their heaviest effort front to back, but “An Ever-Growing Wonder” may have fallen under your radar for some reason or another and that's, wait for it, an ever-growing wonder on our end. Though we all stumble, we will not fall.

“Views That Never Cease, to Keep Me From Myself” from Understanding What We've Grown to Be (2011)

For some odd reason, the word “to” is the only one that starts with a lowercase letter in this song and its album title but WCAR love to keep you guessing with their tunes AND punctuation! Surprisingly to all but ardent We Came as Romans fans, “Understanding What We've Grown to Be” debuted at number 21 on the Billboard 200 and certainly introduced the band to a larger audience. Now it's our job to do the same with “Views That Never Cease, to Keep Me From Myself”; try saying that song title five times fast!

“A Moment” from Tracing Back Roots (2013)

“A Moment” from We Came as Romans' third full-length studio album Tracing Back Roots contains one of their catchiest choruses from front to back, and the record overall is one of the more melodic ones in their six album catalog. This opinion proven by the fact that the normally strictly gruff co-lead vocalist Dave Stephens sings on this one a hell of a lot more than normally. Also, not enough can be said about the cover art for ALL WCAR records but Tracing Back Roots is our favorite and belongs at LACMA.

“Blur” from We Came as Romans (2015)

Even though this effort came in at number eleven on The Billboard 200, the band's self-titled record was the most polarizing amongst WCAR's fan-base, as many lambasted the LP for chasing mainstream success and “dumbing down” their songs. Still, the record isn't THAT bad, and “Blur" is one of the heaviest tracks from this album; its chorus is a sea of “ohhs” and melody that can infect even the most bearded dude at a hardcore show with a sneer and his/her arms crossed against their chest. 

“Promise Me” from Cold Like War (2017)

A true deep cut at track nine, this slow burn known as “Promise Me" is the perfect precursor to the album's strongest song, the album closer “Learning to Survive,” which is effectively We Came as Romans' last song featuring Kyle Pavone. It's truly sad, but we promise you that we won't forget, we will in fact remember, and he will NOT be lost in both loving eyes and in the thoughts of thousands of WCAR fans.