“Before the final track, they told the crowd to “go f-ing crazy so the next band walks out to carnage”. And the crowd delivered” - Headwreck - 1865, Southampton - Gig Review - By The Fans Magazine

Words, Review & Photography Credit: Moira Reilly

The room was pitch black when We Came As Romans took the stage, just a low, atmospheric backing track as the drummer, guitarist, and bassist slipped out from the front of the room and climbed onto the stage.

As they picked up their instruments and hit those first notes, the strobes exploded into lightning-like flashes, accompanied by head bands, spins and  kicks.

By the time the vocalist stormed onstage and unleashed the first roar, the room was already on fire.

A circle pit was requested almost immediately, and the room obeyed without hesitation. Within minutes, crowd surfers were pouring over the barrier, security scrambling to keep up. The guitarist and bassist were moshing as hard as the fans, spinning, kicking, and head-banging in perfect sync with the chaos.

“If you’re not running in a circle, you better be singing this one!” the vocalist yelled, and the crowd did both.

The lighting was dramatic and moody - deep reds and blues, stark strobing whites. Strobes hit on every breakdown, matching the violence of the music. The stage would plunge into darkness for a beat, then explode back into colour with the next riff.

Each band member was on fire the entire performance, never stopping their headbangs, kicks and spins, amping the crowd up throughout. The fan’s excitement kept building, a sea of black t-shirts surging towards the barrier as the gig escalated.

The setlist just kept building, the audience surging more with each track. Where Did You Go triggered one of the biggest reactions of the night, the crowd screaming every word. Falling to a Black Hole was a full‑room eruption, one of their best‑known tracks landing with Linkin Park‑level emotional weight. Newer material hit just as hard, proving the band’s evolution hasn’t dulled their impact.

The lead vocalist delivered a powerful mix of long, soaring cleans and deep, raw growls, all the while performing massive kicks and power stomps in time with the tracks.

Metalcore shows often have a heart, and We Came As Romans delivered theirs with sincerity. At one point, the band got real with the crowd, asking for any entrepreneurs in the house. They went on to have a genuinely heartfelt moment with everyone in the audience who had ever tried to do something themselves, saying “you’re gonna fail, it’s gonna be hard, but don’t be afraid to fail.

The ones who never try are the only ones who fail, you’ve got talent. This band has failed over and over, but we’re still here, you gotta be persistent. This one’s for my dreamers.

It was a grounding moment — honest, vulnerable, and deeply appreciated by the crowd.

The lead shouted out “You guys gotta help me sing this, this one is called Don't Come” and the crowd roared in response. The lead singer led the crowd, singing one line, the crowd singing the next. He dedicated the song to his bro, who lived in the present, and reminded everyone “let’s keep enjoying this moment!”

We Came As Romans closed their set the same way they played the entire night, with massive energy and a room full of moshing roaring fans screaming back at them.

With the room buzzing after the support performance of Within Reach, the house lights dipped for the second time, and, weirdly, the next thing we all heard was the Wii Fit Theme floating through the speakers. The crowds erupted, with audible shouts of “yes I knew they would!”. It was the perfect kind of fun entrance, playful, unserious and a total misdirect before the band tore straight into their opening song with roars and riffs. No easing in, no warm‑up. Just instant chaos. Within seconds, heads were banging, arms were in the air, and the guitarist was on the monitors, raising his arm like a battle cry.

They mentioned they were nearing the end of their tour from Australia, but there was zero sense of fatigue, asking Southampton to go wild.

The crowd matched them beat for beat. The lead singer requested a side to side most pit, and the audience instantly obliged, with calls of “let’s goooooo!”. Within five songs, crowd surfers were flying overhead. At one point, a guy dressed as Jesus was going absolutely feral in the pit, which somehow felt exactly right for the atmosphere.

Their Linkin Park cover was a massive moment. The second they announced it, the room let out a roar. It landed hard, nostalgic, heavy, and cathartic.

The bassist, wearing those bizarre Spy Kids‑style goggles, became a fan favourite instantly. Every time he stepped forward, the crowd reacted like he was the frontman.

Vocally, they were a powerhouse. The lead delivered deep, guttural screams with absolute control, while the bleach‑blonde guitarist handled the melodic clean vocals — long, soaring notes that cut through the heaviness.

Then, something I don’t think anyone expected, a chaos swap. The bassist grabbed the mic and yelled, “You’re mine for three minutes. I don’t know this song, you don’t know this song — let’s gooooo! Three minutes of PLAY TIME!”

Suddenly the whole band had swapped instruments:

Vocalist on guitar

Guitarist on drums

Bassist on vocals

Drummer on bass

It was unhinged, hilarious, and still super tight, showing off the band’s multi-instrument talents and skills. The bassist’s roar was monstrous -the crowd immediately demanded more of him up front.

Despite the chaos, the band were ridiculously tight. Drums: relentless double‑kick and fills. Guitars: thick, crunchy riffs with real bite. Bass: heavy, present, and full of personality. Overall: a perfect blend of precision and wildness

They were moving throughout: jumps, kicks, guitar lifts, power poses, arm swings, the whole set took off. They played their oldest track, a massive success, and went straight into their newest track, which was met with roars from the crowd. The room was fully locked in.

The lighting matched the band perfectly. Heavy top lighting, bright colour washes and rapid strobes for the high energy moments. The lighting changed with the music, bright white for the big hits on verses, before slamming back to colour on the next beat.

They took a moment to shout out the support band, calling them “the GOAT,” and later got the whole crowd waving their arms and chanting “fuck it up” in unison.

Before the final track, they told the crowd to “go fucking crazy so the next band walks out to carnage”. And the crowd delivered.

They closed the set the same way they opened it, with a curveball, but this time it was Bear in the Big Blue House Goodbye Song, a perfect mirror to their Wii Fit entrance and a final wink to the crowd.