They're Only Chasing Safelty as "one of melodic metalcore's biggest mainstream breakthroughs". Henderson said the references to Christianity are more subtle than anything from the band's contemporaries. Brian Flota in his book The Politics of Post-9/11 Music noted unlike other Christian acts, Underoath refer to Jesus by name, whereas others refer to the figure as "Him". The most pop-like tracks on the album, such as "Reinventing Your Exit", were written when Taylor was still a member. Gillespie was given more-vocal presence to contrast with Chamberlain's screams. In the past, Taylor had been the sole lyricist, but for They're Only Chasing Safety, Chamberlain and Gillespie contributed lyrics. Chamberlain said he had to adapt to Gillespie writing chorus sections as he did not listen to many bands with choruses. Chamberlain solely wrote the words to three of the tracks and Gillespie wrote one-to-two by himself, and the rest they wrote together. Tracks McTague used "Your New Aesthetic" (1999) by Jimmy Eat World as a template for "A Boy Brushed Red Living in Black and White". Underoath tried to improve upon the demo version's drum break but were unsuccessful and sampled the loops from the demo, which they had made with Goldman, and used it on the album version. "Reinventing Your Exit" evokes the material of Hawthorne Heights; it evolved from the Taylor-sung track "Heatherwood". The interlude track "The Blue Note" was made in an hour; it consists of two layered stock loops. "It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door" is a murder ballad that features 1980s-esque electronic parts; it recalls the work of the Used and its bridge section includes a choir from a local church. McTague said the band misled the choir about the song's meaning to persuade them to sing on the album. With "Down, Set, Go", the band attempted to emulate the style of Brand New's Deja Entendu (2003), with which they were enamored. For the ending of "I'm Content with Losing", McTague performed his part in the style of the Casket Lottery. "Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape" is reminiscent of the work of Copeland, being anchored around an electronica beat, and was intended to show Underoath "wearing their hearts on their sleeves". McTague said the song deals with a person "realizing the error of [their] ways, asking for forgiveness and making a vow to start over and do what's right". Unlike the rest of the songs