Metalcore band We Came as Romans graced the stage of the HUB Alumni Hall in front of a rather enthusiastic crowd Friday night. The Michigan-based group, who performed at Penn State for the first time Friday, delivered a crowd-pleasing performance featuring hits from all of their albums, including their newest release, Tracing Back Roots.

Illinois-based pop punk band Icon For Hire opened the show. If they didn’t win the crowd over with their music, they certainly did with their hair. Though the pink-haired lead singer Ariel Bloomer certainly didn’t have any problems getting the crowd pumped up.

“A lot of time you play college shows and the kids don’t really know what to do or how to respond to a live setting, which is a little awkward,” said Bloomer. “Tonight’s show was epic because everyone was just so ready to go.”

Icon For Hire

The pop-punk group played a cover of “Jump” by Kriss Kross that seemed to lift the crowd’s mood higher than the guitarist’s mohawk. They also played tracks off their albums Scripted and Icon for Hire.

By the time headliners We Came as Romans took the stage, Alumni Hall was packed with students ready to beat each other up in the form of moshing. The metalcore group opened with a smash-up medley of songs from their first album To Plant a Seed that didn’t seem to disappoint the hyped crowd. They also performed their cover of The Wanted’s “Glad You Came” that was featured on Punk Goes Pop 5.

The crowd went crazy for the metalcore group, maintaining a solid mosh pit throughout the show. The band responded by interacting with the crowd, hopping into the front rows at one point and often holding out the mic to let the audience poorly sing the chorus of songs.

We Came as Romans

The band consistently delivered positive messages between songs, focused on staying positive throughout life. The trend continued when singer David Stephens talked to the crowd during their two-song encore about remaining hopeful during dark times, before launching into their biggest hit song, “Hope.”

The headliners finished off their set with the title track of their first album, To Plant a Seed. Both bands stuck around after the show to take pictures with students.