As I Lay Dying is an American metalcore band from San Diego, California. Formed in 2000 by vocalist Tim Lambesis, the band's first full lineup (including Lambesis' Point of Recognition bandmate Jordan Mancino) was completed in 2001. The band has released eight albums, one split album, and two compilation albums.
As I Lay Dying's fourth studio album, An Ocean Between Us, peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Top Rock chart. The band has performed at festivals such as Wacken Open Air, With Full Force, Soundwave Festival, Warped Tour, Bloodstock Open Air and Taste of Chaos. In 2007, As I Lay Dying won the "Ultimate Metal God" award from MTV2 at the first annual "All That Rocks" special; was named "Artist of the Year" at the San Diego Music Awards in 2005, 2007 and 2008; and was nominated for a 2008 Grammy Award for the song "Nothing Left". Their fifth studio album, The Powerless Rise, was written over a three-year period, and was released in May 2010 to critical acclaim. Their last studio album before their hiatus, Awakened, was released on September 25, 2012.
The band went on an indefinite hiatus in 2014 when Lambesis was convicted and sentenced to six years in prison for soliciting the murder of his estranged wife. The remaining members formed Wovenwar with vocalist Shane Blay.
In 2018, Lambesis reunited with Hipa, Sgrosso, Mancino and Gilbert. On June 8, 2018, the band released the song "My Own Grave", their first recording in six years. They released their seventh studio album, Shaped by Fire, on September 20, 2019. The band's lineup dissolved in the years following the album's release. Hipa departed the band in 2020, followed by Gilbert and Mancino in 2022, just over a month between each other. They were replaced with Ken Susi, Ryan Neff, and Nick Pierce, respectively in 2022; all three would leave the band in 2024, with Sgrosso's departure from the band following shortly, leaving Lambesis as the sole band member. The band released their eighth studio album, Through Storms Ahead, on November 15, 2024.
History Formation, Beneath the Encasing of Ashes and Frail Words Collapse (2000–2004) After leaving the band Society's Finest, where he played guitar, vocalist Tim Lambesis formed As I Lay Dying in 2000. Starting out as a duo with drummer Jordan Mancino, they first met as a band in February 2001. They both were in the hardcore punk band Point of Recognition. The band's name came from the novel of the same name by William Faulkner that was published in 1930. The band's lyrics and music are not directly inspired by the novel.
Shortly after the band's formation, Pluto Records offered As I Lay Dying a recording contract. The band accepted and entered the studio one month later to record their first album, Beneath the Encasing of Ashes, released in June 2001. The band then recorded five songs for a split album, again through Pluto Records, with San Diego post-hardcore band American Tragedy.
As I Lay Dying wanted to expand to a five-piece with another guitarist and a bassist. Mancino commented, "we started going on tour and we needed obviously more people than that." As Lambesis and Mancino were the only permanent members, the band recruited friends to perform with them and underwent several lineup changes. Bassist Noah Chase departed in 2001, while Brandon Hays, and his replacement, Aaron Kennedy, departed in 2003. During early 2003, when As I Lay Dying's Pluto Records contract expired, the band pursued deals with other labels. After extensive touring and increasing popularity, Metal Blade Records offered As I Lay Dying a deal in March 2003.
In July 2003, the band's second studio album, Frail Words Collapse, was released. Produced by Lambesis, the album peaked at No. 30 on Billboards Independent Albums chart and No. 41 on the Top Heatseekers chart. William York of Allmusic thought the band "doesn't really add anything new to the mix from a musical standpoint" with the release, while also praising it for being "solid enough and well executed" with "adequate" production. Sherwin Frias of Jesus Freak Hideout felt similarly and commented, "As I Lay Dying didn't exactly break many boundaries in making this record", but praised that each song is "executed so well (and with such precision) that nary a song misses its target." Touring then occurred to promote the album, with support from bands Himsa, Shadows Fall, The Black Dahlia Murder, Killswitch Engage, In Flames, Sworn Enemy, and Hatebreed. Music videos for the songs "94 Hours" and "Forever" received rotation on Fuse and MTV2's Headbangers Ball.
Shadows Are Security and An Ocean Between Us (2005–2009)
As I Lay Dying entered Big Fish recording studio in Encinitas, California, US in January 2005 to record their third studio album. Shadows Are Security was released in June of the same year and debuted at No. 1 on the Independent Albums chart. It was the band's first release to enter the Billboard 200—at No. 35—and sold about 275,000 copies. Wade Kergan of AllMusic called it "one of the strongest releases of 2005," and commented that new guitarists Phil Sgrosso and Nick Hipa make the band "stronger." Rod Smith of Decibel Magazine commented, "Tim Lambesis's finely honed roar in bittersweet instrumental matrices augmented by occasional sung vocals by bass guitarist Clint Norris. Guitarists Phil Sgrosso and Nick Hipa whip up a melodic cyclone on 'The Darkest Nights'." By this time, guitarist Evan White had quit the band for personal reasons after his mother died. Dave Arthur of Kings to You performed all singing, because it sounded more powerful in the studio than Clint Norris's singing.
As I Lay Dying began touring to promote the new record by making appearances at Hell on Earth, Winter Headline Tour, and Ozzfest, as well as a tour with Slipknot and Unearth. The band was on the second stage with Rob Zombie, Killswitch Engage, Mastodon, The Haunted, and It Dies Today. The band raised its profile in 2006 through its support slot on the Taste of Chaos tour in the US, alongside Deftones, Thrice, Dredg, Funeral for a Friend, and Story of the Year. In May 2006, Beneath the Encasing of Ashes and the songs from the split album were re-released through Metal Blade Records as A Long March: The First Recordings. The album contained the original and re-recorded versions of the songs from the split album. The band preferred to re-release the material, as they didn't want fans paying large sums of money to listen to early releases. The re-release peaked at No. 3 on the Independent Albums chart and No. 129 on the Billboard 200 chart. In mid-2006, As I Lay Dying headlined the Sounds of the Underground Festival.
Norris left the band on good terms in November 2006 to focus on his marriage. The band auditioned ten bassists, but none was successful. Lambesis received demo tapes from a band called This Endearing, of which bassist Josh Gilbert was a member. Lambesis chose to "sit on it" and waited for the band to record more material. This Endearing disbanded and Gilbert was recruited as As I Lay Dying's new bassist.
In 2007, As I Lay Dying started recording a new album titled An Ocean Between Us, released on August 21, 2007. Debuting at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Top Rock chart, with first-week sales of 39,000 units, the album was the band's highest-charting release.
Co-produced by Killswitch Engage guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz and As I Lay Dying, and mixed by Colin Richardson, the album received generally positive reviews. Christa L. Titus of Billboard commented: "Whatever the differences between As I Lay Dying's personal desires and what its fans demand, this album surely acts as a bridge," praising the song "Comfort Betrays" for its guitar solo. Scott Alisoglu of Blabbermouth.net described the album as "a well-rounded and often thrashy metalcore album, as the band has struck an effective balance between aggression and accessible melodies." Thom Jurek of Allmusic praised the band for expanding its musical range by including melodic singing and choruses, as they had previously done on "Confined" from Shadows Are Security. It was the first time that bass guitarist Gilbert recorded a studio album with the band.
To promote the album, As I Lay Dying performed at the Warped Tour 2007 in August, and toured through Europe in September with Darkest Hour, Himsa, and Maroon. The band was awarded the title "Ultimate Metal God" by MTV2's "All That Rocks" special, and was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of "Best Metal Performance" for the song "Nothing Left". The other Grammy Award nominees included winner Slayer, King Diamond, Machine Head, and Shadows Fall. The band played a portion of the 2008 Warped Tour, as well as the Taste of Chaos UK 2008 Tour with headliners Atreyu. In 2008, they played the UK Bloodstock festival alongside Dimmu Borgir. On April 9, 2009, the DVD This Is Who We Are was released in Europe, and was released in the US on April 14, 2009. The DVD was certified Gold in the US almost a month after its release.
The Powerless Rise (2010–2011) After recording through 2009, the band's fifth record The Powerless Rise was streamed on the MySpace Music website on May 7, 2010, up until May 10, 2010. The album was officially released on May 11, 2010, and received generally positive critical acclaim, with one critic saying: "Fans of metalcore in general, and As I Lay Dying in particular, will be more than satisfied with The Powerless Rise, as the band's gradual progression and consistency makes this their best album."
In 2010 the band toured in support of The Powerless Rise, headlining the majority of their shows. In the first half of the year, the band embarked on a US tour with Demon Hunter, blessthefall, and War of Ages. This was followed by a mid-2010 headlining tour titled "The Cool Tour" across the US, and a headlining tour across US/Canada that also featured All That Remains, Unearth, and Carnifex. The band's final headline tour of the year was in Europe, with Heaven Shall Burn, Suicide Silence, and Sylosis.
In February 2011, the band headlined a US tour with support from Winds of Plague and After the Burial. The band then toured in late April/early May with Trivium, in support of Disturbed, on the "Music as a Weapon" tour in Australia and New Zealand. Then at the end of May and beginning of June, the band headlined a few performances with Heaven Shall Burn.
On November 8, 2011, As I Lay Dying released a compilation, Decas, in honor of the band's ten-year anniversary. The album featured three new, original songs; four cover versions of songs by bands such as Slayer, Judas Priest and Descendents; a re-recorded medley that uses parts of several songs taken from Beneath the Encasing of Ashes; and four remixes, consisting of one song from each of their albums since Frail Words Collapse. The album's first track "Paralyzed" was released as a lyric video on September 13, 2011, and as a free download on iTunes on November 7, the day before the album's release. The band embarked on the "A Decade of Destruction" tour, coinciding with the release of the album, from November to December 2011.
Awakened, Tim Lambesis' trial and hiatus (2012–2016) On January 25, 2012, an announcement revealed that the band would be playing the Mayhem Festival of 2012 with Slipknot, Slayer, Motörhead, Anthrax, The Devil Wears Prada, Asking Alexandria, Whitechapel, Upon A Burning Body, I, the Breather, Betraying the Martyrs, and Dirtfedd. The band announced in April 2012 that Bill Stevenson, who had previously worked with NOFX and Rise Against, would be the producer for their sixth album.