We Came As Romans explore a rock-ready sound on "I Survive."

Judging by their "Let These Words Last Forever" lyric video, and their Understanding What We've Grown to Be re-issue, we've grown accustomed to the scorched-earth approach from We Came As Romans. But on their third full-length album, Tracing Back Roots, out on July 23 on Equal Vision Records, and their new song, "I Survive," there's a whole other side of the band on display.

Listen to We Came As Romans' "I Survive" after the jump. 

On "I Survive," We Came As Romans unveil a more mainstream rock-ready sound, relatively speaking, of course. There's still plenty of growling drama in the midst of the radio-friendly hook. A lot of that vocal fury comes from Aaron Gillespie (The Almost, ex-Underoath), who sits in for a memorable guest vocal turn.

"For 'I Survive,' it was awesome to be able to push the boundaries of what We Came As Romans is," guitarist and lyricist Joshua Moore told us. "It was exciting, and definitely a trip outside our comfort zone, but we are all in love with this song. Besides the anxiousness for our fans to hear it, I feel nothing but positive and great vibes for this song. And to be honest, I think a lot of that has to do with having Aaron Gillespie singing on the track. He was a massive inspiration to us back when we were just a local band, and even as we made that transition to a touring band, every member of this band had looked up to him. So it's honestly a dream come true for all of us in the band to have him on one of our songs."

"My hands are tied but I will make it/ I'm not shaken/ Even when my mind's exhausted/ I survive," Gillespie and and We Came As Romans vocalist Dave Stephens sing. As they fall in and out of unison, they maintain a sense of uplift amid the song's progression from reserved calm on the verse to chaos on the chorus. "And the world tries to drown you out, flooding your life like water-filled lungs."

+ Listen to We Came As Romans' "I Survive."

Photo credit: Douglas Sonders