I can’t really put into words how excited I was when I got told that the We Came As Romans tour was approved for me to cover. I hadn’t seen WCAR since prior to Kyle Pavone’s passing and it was more a sentimental moment for me. The other bands on the ticket were also some solid acts that I was also very ecstatic to see.

First up was Hollow Front. Of the bands there, I was not as familiar with them, so I really wasn’t sure what I was in for. As the lights go black and music starts playing in the background, Hollow Front runs out on stage. They open with a song called “Affected” and whoa, I was immediately blown away. The 7-song set was intense breakdowns and banger tunes. Right after their performance, I looked them up and saved some songs to my Spotify library. Was super impressed by them.

Following their lead was Dayseeker. This was a performance that I was really looking forward to because in the last year, I have been getting really into them – to the point where I knew almost every song. The 7-song set was opened by “Embers Glow”, and we couldn’t have asked for a better start. The Moment Rory Rodriguez started singing the words to “Crooked Soul”, I knew we were getting to the hits. Following that song, they played “Burial Plot” and “Drunk” and I sat their singing every word with the crowd. They came to the end of their set and Rory tells us the story of him having his daughter and then 2 months later his dad passed away. They begin to play “Sleeptalk” and the crowd bursts into unison singing every word. It was a wonderful performance.

The Devil Wears Prada takes the stage soon after and this was a band that I haven’t seen since maybe Warped Tour In 2010 and it was just because I was walking by. I remember giving them the stank face as I walked by because it was super brutal. That really was my only memory of ever seeing TDWP and I was excited to see them again based on their most recent ZII EP that came out. They played some of the hits like “Chemical”, “Forlorn”, and “Sacrifice”. And then they surprised us all by ending the set with “Hey John, What's Your Name Again?” and the crowd went wild. Overall, a solid performance.

And at long last, the performance that we have all been waiting for, We Came as Romans. Lots of emotions leafing up to this point and I was ready. Out the gate, they played “To Plant A Seed” and I was living. They played the To Plant A Seed album in full with other songs sprinkled in the mix and it was the last time they would ever play any of those songs live after this tour. It was bittersweet but I truly understood where they were coming from. In between songs, they played video of them explaining why the record was so important to them. They played so many songs that I grew up listening to and it was an amazing experience. They ended the set with “An Ever-Growing Wonder” and then ensued the encore. The crowd chants and chants then, we see the lights go dim, and the monitors go on. A tribute to Kyle starts showing while “Promise Me” plays in the background. It was a beautiful thing. Towards the end of the song, the rest of the band comes out on stage and it’s like they are playing with Kyle again with his vocals coming through he speakers. The song ends and Dave Stephens talks to us about the experience of losing Kyle. It was truly a great message and summed up very well, get help if you need it. They close out the show with “Cold Like War” and “Darkbloom”.

I can say this was one of the best concert experiences I have ever experienced to date. Can’t wait to see all these amazing bands again one day.