We’ve featured a few videos by this crew, but I was still surprised to find that Cold Like War is We Came As Romans’ fifth release. So many bands, so little time… and time is also my excuse for being so late with this review. Thing is, I’ve been enjoying the album so much that even though it’s delayed, I just had to get this review up.
One thing that drew me to Cold Like War was reading somewhere that it was for fans of Linkin Park (amongst other bands)… which I thought was utter nonsense when I first span the CD and heard “Vultures With Clipped Wings”‘ post-hardcore tones belting out (after an ittedly milder intro). However, part way into title track “Cold Like War” with its more genre-spanning sounds, I can definitely see where that statement could be true. There’s an edge of electronica, and a definite tone to the lyrical content over the clean lyrics that pays homage to Chester’s boys. The more gentle opening to “Two Hands” cemented that influence.
It’s this mix of styles that makes We Came As Romans so accessible and suitable for a listen regardless of the mood you’re in. What sold them to me more was seeing the live video for “Wasted Age” that we featured recently (and which is down below). This looks like a band that’s absolutely going to blow you away at a gig and some of the tracks on this album are definitely going to be far better through a stack of Marshalls than they are through my cheap headphones.
In our recent Band of the Day day feature, they did say that they aimed for a good live show with plenty of sing-along moments and the like, and this is without a doubt their strong point. In the car I find myself belting out the choruses and hammering the steering wheel with my hands.
The heavy “Foreign Fire”, the rousing “Learning To Survive”, the aforementioned emotive “Cold Like War”… this album is full of great tracks. Not every one is as good as the rest and I it I’m not a huge fan of that opener, but “Vultures…” aside I’ve really taken to Cold Like War.
If you never quite liked Linkin Park because they were too heavy for you, or if you love the abrasiveness of post-hardcore but sometimes wish it would mellow out a bit then this is the album you’ve been waiting for.
Cold Like War is out now
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