We Came As Romans – Varsity Theater – Minneapolis MN – February 14th 2023

We Came As Romans with ERRA and Brand of Sacrifice – Varsity Theater – Minneapolis, MN – 2/14/23

Review and photos by Kate Klaus

The Varsity Theater in downtown Minneapolis was filled to capacity for a Valentine’s Day show with a stacked lineup including We Came As Romans, ERRA, and Brand of Sacrifice.  Canadian metal band Brand of Sacrifice delivered a thunderous set to open the night and get the crowd fired up for a high-energy, heavy-hitting night of music. Lead singer Kyle Anderson engaged the crowd with his dynamic stage presence and deep metal screams, and the whole band displayed great energy and musicality.

Alabama based metalcore band Erra was up next and continued with the thrashing energy of the night.  J.T. Cavey delivered rough and raw metal vocals, complemented by guitarist Jesse Cash’s riffs and clean vocals.  Drummer Alex Ballew and bassist Conor Hesse provided a booming rhythm to accompany the driving sounds of the band.  Their 9-song set powerfully concluded with “Snowblood”, the lead track off their recently released album “ERRA”.

With the theater fired up from these two powerful acts, We Came As Romans took the stage to a roar from the crowd and launched into their first song, “Daggers”.  Dave Stephens sharp vocals pierced through the theater, and he carried the infectious energy of the hard-hitting band through song after song filled with heavy guitar riffs and booming bass.  Joined on stage by Erra’s JT Cavey for “Doublespeak”, they mixed in slower and more melodic numbers with emotional moments shared with the crowd.  They closed their 14 song set with the titale track of their recent release, “Darkbloom”, and for an encore showcased their collaboration with show-openers Brand Of Sacrifice who joined them on stage.  They closed the encore with “Black Hole”, also off the 2022 Darkbloom album, closing a beautifully dark Valentine’s night of powerful music.