We Came As Romans ~ Band Favorite

Jumat, 28 Oktober 2011

We Came As Romans

21.53

Muhammad Fuad

We Came as Romans is an American rock band from Troy, Michigan. Formed in 2005, the band signed to Equal Vision Records in April 2009 and have released two EPs, Demonstrations (2008) and Dreams (2008), and two full-length albums, To Plant a Seed (2009) and Understanding What We've Grown to Be (2011). We Came as Romans have been known to use Detroit, Michigan as a reference to home, and has toured across the United States, Canada, Europe, New Zealand, and Australia.

History

[edit] Formation and early years as This Emergency (2005–2008)

In August 2005, high school seniors Sean N. Zelda, David Stephens, Jonny Nabors, Mark Myatt, and Joshua Moore formed a band called "This Emergency". Now frontman, David Stephens played guitar during this period. They performed various gigs throughout the metro Detroit area. In November 2005, the band parted ways with bass player Jonny Nabors and replaced him with Sean E. Daly. In June 2006, Zelda quit the band to attend the University of Michigan. In the summer of 2006, a close friend of the band, Larry Clark, officially joined on vocals and with Myatt changed the name to We Came as Romans.^[1] According to David Stephens, during this time, two songs entitled "Mouth to Mouth" and the original version of Colours were released with Larry Clark as the vocalist.

[edit] Demonstrations and Dreams EP's (2008–2009)

After the name change they spent the next few years getting their members to the band's current lineup. Their first EP, Demonstrations (sometimes referred to as the "Motions EP") was sold at concerts and online through their website. Between EPs, We Came as Romans embarked on the "V-Neck & Shaved Chest" Tour (June 2008) with Close to Home. Afterwards, Dreams was released on December 12, 2008. It was produced by Joey Sturgis and was met with many favorable reviews.^[2] AbsolutePunk gave Dreams a 79/100 review. Sputnikmusic gave them a 3.5/5. They called the EP "Short and sweet, but lasting and fulfilling".^[3] Two days before the release of To Plant a Seed, We Came as Romans concluded support of Oh, Sleeper and The Chariot on their co-headlining "Here a tour, there a tour, everywhere a tour tour" Tour (September - November 2009).^[4]

[edit] To Plant a Seed (2009–2011)

To Plant a Seed, We Came as Romans' first full-length album, was released on November 3, 2009.^[5] Like Dreams, this album was produced alongside Joey Sturgis and features re-recorded versions of "Dreams" and "Intentions" (featuring Tyler "Telle" Smith) originally from Dreams. We Came as Romans finished 2009 with the "Leave It to the Suits Tour" (November and December 2009) with I See Stars, Of Mice & Men, and Broadway.^[6]
During January 2010, they sporadically headlined events, and then set out on "The Emptiness Tour" (February and March 2010) with Alesana, A Skylit Drive, The Word Alive, and Of Mice & Men^[7] (which was recorded by BVTV "Band of the Week" for viewing on YouTube),^[8] the headlining "We Are Not Meaningless" tour (April - May 2010) with Four Letter Lie and Life on Repeat,^[9] and "The Welcome to the Circus Tour" (May and June 2010) with Asking Alexandria, From First to Last, Our Last Night, and A Bullet for Pretty Boy,^[10] to promote this album. The first video single "To Plant a Seed" was released on May 11, 2010 according to iTunes. On June 11, 2010, through the band's Facebook and Twitter pages, they said that they are going to the studio to do a couple new songs in a week. On June 15, 2010, We Came as Romans entered the studio with producer Joey Sturgis to record these songs. The band was in the studio between June 15 and June 20, 2010.^[11] These studio sessions would result in the release of the single, To Move on Is to Grow.
Following tours in 2010 included the "Scream It Like You Mean It 2010" Tour (July and August 2010) with Silverstein, Emery, Dance Gavin Dance, I Set My Friends On Fire, Sky Eats Airplane, Ivoryline, and Close to Home,^[12] the "Band of Brothers Tour" (August - October 2010), which included full U.S. and Canada dates with In Fear and Faith, Confide, Upon a Burning Body, and Abandon All Ships^[13] (also recorded by BVTV "Band of the Week" for viewing on YouTube),^[14] the Imperial "Never Say Die" European Tour (October and November 2010) with Parkway Drive, Comeback Kid, Bleeding Through, War from a Harlots Mouth, Emmure, and Your Demise,^[15] and finally, the "No Sleep Til" Festival Tour (December 2010) closing out the year in New Zealand and Australia with Megadeth headlining.^[15] We Came as Romans appeared on "Punk Goes Pop Volume Three", released November 1, 2010, covering Justin Timberlake's "My Love".^[16] The band announced via their Twitter and Facebook profiles that during the first tour of 2011, "My Love" would be played for the first and last times. We Came as Roman's second video single "To Move on Is to Grow" was released on December 14, 2010 according to iTunes. We Came as Roman's title track "To Plant a Seed" appeared on "Equal Vision Records Presents: New Sounds 2011" released December 21, 2010 on iTunes. On January 6, 2011, the band's label, Equal Vision Records, announced that, To Plant a Seed, would be re-released including the new single "To Move on Is to Grow" as a CD/DVD deluxe version. It was sold exclusively on Merchnow.com, iTunes, and F.Y.E., and was released January 18, 2011. The DVD includes 38-minutes of exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, live performances from their recent United States, 2010 tours (Scream It Like You Mean It and Band of Brothers), and the new music video for “To Move on Is to Grow”.

[edit] Understanding What We've Grown To Be (2011–present)

Although recording (Part 1) for the follow-up of To Plant a Seed was not scheduled until February and March 2011,^[11] We Came as Romans embarked on the headlining Motel 6 "Rock Yourself to Sleep" Tour (January and February 2011) with Woe, Is Me, For Today, The Word Alive, and Texas in July,^[17] which included the Outerloop Presents Amped and Alive "Ice Jam" festival on January 30, 2011 at Sonar, in Baltimore, Maryland with Silverstein co-headlining the event with We Came as Romans.^[18] On January 10, 2011, five days into the "Rock Yourself to Sleep" Tour, Equal Vision Records released a statement regarding the health of guitarist, Joshua Moore, stating, "Early this morning, We Came as Romans’ guitarist Joshua Moore was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis and is currently being treated at a hospital in Nebraska." Bassist Andy Glass stated, “It saddens us to see Joshua in this state but we hope that everyone can wish him a speedy recovery and want to thank all of our fans for being understanding in this tough situation.” Joshua Moore was not scheduled to appear on any of the future Motel 6 "Rock Yourself to Sleep" tour dates, however through Joshua Moore's Twitter and Facebook accounts on February 1, 2011, he stated that with a second doctor's approval, he may be cleared to rejoin the tour, and on February 4, 2011 he rejoined the band in Lancaster, PA. Also, during the beginning stages of Joshua Moore's illness recovery, We Came As Romans officially cancelled shows in Denver, CO (January 10, 2011) and Salt Lake City, UT (January 11, 2011) due to inclement weather.^[19] During this tour, We Came as Romans' clean vocalist, Kyle Pavone, appeared under the name "Titus" sporadically, mixing electro house, fidget house and dubstep.
The band then went on supporting A Day to Remember for their headlining "Game Changers Tour" (March - April 2011),^[20] and headlining the "Scream It Like You Mean It 2011" European Tour (April - May 2011) with Miss May I, The Word Alive, and This or the Apocalypse.^[21] Recording (Part 2) for the follow-up of To Plant a Seed was also scheduled for May - July 2011.^[11] On December 8, 2010 (first day of band releases), We Came as Romans were among the initial list of bands announced to play the Vans Warped Tour 2011, playing all of the tour dates (June - August 2011).^[22] According to We Came as Romans' label, Equal Vision Records, "The band is currently writing for their sophomore full-length album, which they will be recording with Joey Sturgis between tours and is expected to see a Fall 2011 release date".^[23] In an interview with Brian Walsh, a Monster Energy Pit reporter for Warped Tour 2011, Joshua Moore confirmed that their second album is indeed all planned out and they will be entering the studio before embarking on Warped Tour.^[24] During this time, We Came as Romans appeared in the #25 (June/July 2011) issue of Substream Music Press magazine, and Dave Stephens appeared in Alternative Press magazine issue #227.2 (August 2011). The band was also highlighted in the Vans Warped Tour Official Program.
Understanding What We've Grown to Be was finished and given a September 13, 2011, release date. On June 22, 2011, the first single, entitled "Mis//Understanding" was released via Equal Vision Records through YouTube.^[25] On June 23, 2011 the title track to the album, "Understanding What We've Grown to Be" was also released via YouTube.^[26] Both of these songs were bundled into a pre-order for sale on iTunes which was released on July 5, 2011.^[27] On July 14, 2011, cover art for Understanding What We've Grown to Be was released via puzzle on the band's homepage.^[28]
According to the band, "musically and lyrically, Understanding What We've Grown to Be holds a much darker tone than their previous release, To Plant a Seed. While still maintaining the band’s overall theme of positivity and brotherhood, the new material takes on a more straightforward approach to life’s struggles and the challenges of growing up."^[29] On August 24, 2011, Equal Vision Records via YouTube released the third single entitled "What I Wished I Never Had".^[26] On August 28, 2011, Understanding What We've Grown to Be was leaked unofficially by an unknown source. On September 13, 2011, Hot Topic released the "Alternative Press Limited Edition We Came As Romans Mini Magazine", packaged with a commemorative "I'm Alive" bracelet and compilation disc featuring the title track "Understanding What We've Grown To Be".^[30] We Came as Romans headlined the United States and Canada, Merchnow.com + Arkaik Clothing "I'm Alive" Tour (September - October 2011) with support from Miss May I, Of Mice & Men, Texas in July, and Close to Home.^[29] We Came as Romans and Close to Home also played the Kent, Ohio Festival at The Outpost with Worth The Wait and Ionia on October 15, 2011. According to an Outerloop Management source, as of September 21, 2011, Understanding What We've Grown to Be reached #20 on Billboard Top 200, #7 on Independent Current Albums (Indie Chart), #5 on Top Hard Music Albums, #10 on Top Current Rock Albums, and #16 on Overall Digital Albums. According to the same Outerloop Management source, as of September 28, 2011, Understanding What We've Grown to Be stayed in the Billboard Top 200 at #103. On October 16, 2011, We Came as Romans came in at #43 on Independent Albums and #22 on Hard Rock Albums on Billboard Top 200. We Came as Romans are currently supporting The Devil Wears Prada on the Australia "Dead Throne Tour" (October 2011) with additional support from Dream On, Dreamer. We Came as Romans will provide support on the WHOOZNXT in association with Headbang for the Highway "World War III Tour" (October - November 2011), featuring co-headliners Hollywood Undead and Asking Alexandria with additional support from Borgore and Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows; which will include the Soundcheck Hollywood "A Reckless Halloween" event at The Wiltern in Los Angeles, California on October 31, 2011, featuring Asking Alexandria performing with special guest Steven Adler of Guns N' Roses, Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows, Winds of Plague, and Stick To Your Guns. We Came as Romans will then headline the Merchnow.com and EveryConcertEver.com "Take A Picture, It Will Last Longer" Tour (November - December 2011) with support from Falling In Reverse, Sleeping with Sirens, Atilla, and For All I Am, to support the new record which; will officially close out We Came as Romans' 2011 tour schedule.^[31] To begin 2012, We Came as Romans are scheduled to co-headline the Macbeth Footwear and Keep A Breast "European Tour" (January - February) with Alesana and special guest support from Iwrestledabearonce and Glamour of The Kill. Understanding What We've Grown to Be was released on September 16, 2011 by Nuclear Blast throughout Europe.^[31] We Came as Romans will also be playing the "Scream Out Fest" (February 18 & 19, 2012) in Tokyo, Japan.

[edit] Guest appearances

David Stephens appeared as a vocalist on the track, "Captain Tyin' Knots vs. Mr. Walkway (No Way)", by Sleeping with Sirens. This track appeared on the group's debut full-length album, With Ears to See and Eyes to Hear, which released on March 23, 2010, through Rise Records.
Stephens also appeared as a vocalist on the track, "Rock N' No Soul", by I Am Abomination. This track was featured on I Am Abomination's debut full-length album To Our Forefathers, which released on May 11, 2010 via Good Fight Records.^[32]
Joshua Moore co-wrote, and Stephens appeared as a vocalist on the track, "The Wretched", by The Word Alive. This track appeared on the band's debut full-length album, Deceiver, which released on August 31, 2010, through Fearless Records.
Andy Glass played bass for Close to Home on the entire "Scream It Like You Mean It 2010" Tour (July and August 2010).

[edit] Christian band debate

When asked if they are a Christian band, lead guitarist, Joshua Moore replied, "We have Christian dudes in our band and we have non-Christian dudes in our band, and as a whole, we're not a Christian band. We definitely get it, but we also get it a lot because our music, as a whole, has a positive message to it, and there aren't a whole lot of bands with a positive message who aren't Christian bands. Typically, it's just Christian bands who promote a positive message. Just because we have a message, and it's not about killing each other, we get the Christian band tag."^[33]