As I Lay Dying´s Future

The band As I Lay Dying just posted a statement explaining their fans and updating them of their present situation and future, since Tim Lambesis (vocalist) pleaded guilty to the charges of hiring a hitman to kill his estranged wife, which can lead him to spend nine years in prison.

 

Here is the statement:

 

"There have been a lot of questions from fans over the past year and we'll hopefully be able to provide more answers over time. However, this update is only to address things related to AILD's future.

Originally, we said we'd update fans as soon as we knew more. We apologize for not sticking to that. It seemed best to wait until definitive news came in with a specific timeline. However, in light of speculation on other sites, an official update from As I Lay Dying seems to be the best way to clarify some things.

A good starting point is to clarify some things that have often been falsely reported. Tim was not a Christian at the time of his arrest, nor was As I Lay Dying a Christian band in 2013. It hadn't been for some time and, to the best of my knowledge, only one of the people playing in the band even claimed to be a Christian at that time. The changed view had been written about it in a handful of As I Lay Dying songs and Tim's later atheistic view had even been documented in court records. However, it doesn't make as sensational of a headline to refer to the arrest of the "Ex-Christian Metal Sub-Genre Independent Artist" as it does the "Grammy Nominated Top 10 Selling Christian Rockstar" of the past.

With all that said, we don't know how each musician from the previous era of As I Lay Dying will think about these topics in the future. For example, Tim has spent much of the last year reevaluating what originally convinced him to abandon belief in God. I have gathered that after much brokenness and repentance he sees things differently, considers himself a follower of Jesus, someone submitted to the will of God, or whatever you want to call it. That's for him to talk about when he's comfortable and only time will tell if he is sincere. What is certain though is that it's impossible to face the events of last year without being changed in some way. Let's let the guys focus on future music and hopefully the headline driven press will leave this issue alone for a while given some clarification.

Uncertainty ahead...
As I Lay Dying was originally founded/owned by Tim and then eventually the ownership was shared with Jordan about six years later. As the only official members, neither would like to move forward at the moment regardless off the upcoming sentencing time (which is still yet to be determined / not 9 years). There has been enough communication to establish some differences in opinion about what to do in the distant future. That keeps AILD's future in limbo. The hibernating version of the band is just the official band owners, which means As I Lay Dying is Tim & Jordan. This is based on the uncertainty of the future, including who will be performing with the band when/if that time comes. There have been nearly 20 guys who filled the vacant bass or guitar positions in As I Lay Dying history. The current setup is definitely not a closed door on some of the ex-members talking in the future, but it just makes sense for now that AILD is only Tim and Jordan.

Two opinions...
Tim has acknowledged his guilt and clearly made some bad decisions in a period of time where he acted contrary to the person he's been most of his life. He believes AILD should only pick back up if it's in a form restored to its roots. For Tim, the potential of pursuing AILD again means working on a lot of other more important things in his personal life first.

On the other hand, Jordan feels differently about the future. Even if more discussions were to take place, he would rather take time to pursue other things. That includes releasing new music with three of the guys from the most recent As I Lay Dying lineup. It's a chance for Jordan to be more involved in the songwriting process and enjoy other styles he'd rather play. In fact, they've already recorded their debut album and I'm sure it'll be awesome. It's not meant to replace As I Lay Dying because it is something stylistically different under a different name. Interestingly enough, their vocalist is also a former Christian like his new bandmates and was/is the guitar player for Oh Sleeper (Shane Blay). They'll have stuff to release through Metal Blade relatively soon, which will be an exciting/interesting combination given the band's more radio friendly sound.

In terms of music, Tim doesn't want to pursue performing live music full time regardless of what length his sentence ends up being. His sentence certainly won't be forever, but even so, touring full time doesn't seem healthy or practical given his new outlook and goals. Creating new music is the part Tim loves most and he will always continue to release albums. That includes a bunch of stuff he has recorded in the past six months that he will announce a project name for soon as well. As an occasional ear behind the scenes, it is good hear him playing guitar again and writing lots of riffs again like he did across the first five As I Lay Dying releases.

Hopefully that addresses the major questions related to As I Lay Dying. AILD is sleeping rather than dead, and there are two separate projects to hold you over whether or not it is awakened again.

Tim Lambesis Posts Update

Tim Lambesis, As I Lay Dying frontman, was arrested on May 7 after allegedly trying to hire a hitman to kill his estranged wife.

Check out the singer's blog post in full:

"What I Can Talk About

I’ve come across many comments, both private and public, asking me to explain more about my case or to explicitly state what my current worldview is.

First, I simply am not allowed to do either of those things.

Some day I will be able to tell the story of all that has happened in detail to get the facts straight and representing the many sides to this fairly complex story. In the mean time, many of you will make your assumptions and take the sensationalism of the press focusing on selling points at face value. I can’t stop that from happening, and I’ve learned something by not having that kind of control. The people who want understanding will wait until the formalities and trials are done. Strangely enough, those type of minds are the people least likely to be judgmental even if I am found guilty. Those reporting from the courtroom will only pass along select facts and the case itself will only require select facts that do not encompass the entirety events. On the other hand, the seemingly larger percentage of people delight in voicing their opinion even though I personally have never said a word about even a single detail related to my case. Unspecific to me, that is a terribly sad reality greatly in contrast to the type of discussion I intend to start by choosing to post again.

Second, all I have the ability to do right now is keep learning.

By posting again I hope to attract people like me who are willing to look at all sides of a philosophical issue to learn before they speak. In fact, I’d be happy if this whole thing was just a way to recommend further readings to each other. However, I do accept that there will be some true geniuses who will try to turn each comment section into what topic they would like to discuss instead as if they created the original post and we all stumbled on their page.

I’m out on bail, but on house arrest. My family has jobs and the ability to run errands or take an afternoon/evening out. I have the unique opportunity of being able to focus and study like I may never have again in life after this. While I can’t say that I always enjoy it, it is more valuable than I originally acknowledged.

Lastly, while I can’t say exactly what it is I believe epistemologically or metaphysically, I can explain what I’m interested in learning.

I grew up in a Christian home and held that belief myself for many years. In the process of sincerely trying to defend that belief in a scholarly way and shortly after finishing my degree, I felt that it was unreasonable to call myself a Christian in light of the evidence. Many AILD fans picked up on the not-so-subtle hints at my worldview change in a couple songs on Awakened. It was never really hidden. Anyway, after my incarceration I found myself re-evaluating topics that I had previously sworn I would never waste my time looking at again. Many can chalk that up as one point for pure boredom in an isolation cell, or you can look at it providentially as the needed circumstance and only possible way to get me to humble my mind.

Either way, I don’t want to just read aimlessly. These daily lists are ways for me understand what I’ve already covered and which topics I should get more material on to read more in depth. Since these lists are public, it is also a way for me to discover the ignorance of many people who post. To be most helpful, please stay on topic.”

Tim Lambesis Granted House Arrest Release

Tim Lambesis, As I Lay Dying frontman, was arrested on May 7 after allegedly trying to hire a hitman to kill his estranged wife. Lambesis pleaded “not guilty” at his arraignment on Thursday May 9^th and has been released on $2 million bail after spending three weeks in prison.

According to the guidelines set by court, Lambesis was put under house arrest, has to wear a GPS tracking device and is forbidden to contact his estranged wife and the couple´s three adopted children.

Tim Lambesis´s attorney filled papers asking the court to make an exception to the singer´s house arrest - “Defendant Timothy Lambesis is currently on house arrest and due to the restrictions of his release cannot leave the house to seek medical attention for the neck injury from which he is currently suffering.” On August a judge signed an order granting Lambesis a release from house arrest to attend physical therapy due to a neck injury.

Tim Lambesis will return to San Diego North County Superior Courthouse on September 16^th for his scheduled preliminary hearing.

Tim Lambesis Free on Bail

Tim Lambesis, As I Lay Dying vocalist, has been free on $2 million bail after spending three weeks in prison after being accused of trying to hire a hitman to kill his estranged wife.

The vocalist left Vista Detention Facility in San Diego County on May 30^th, but according to the guidelines set by court, he will have to wear a GPS tracking device and he is forbidden to contact his estranged wife and the couple´s three adopted children.

The next court date is set on June 26^th.

As I Lay Dying decide to drop off their upcoming tour with Killswitch Engage

Due to recent events regarding frontman Tim Lambesis, As I Lay Dying has decided to drop off their upcoming tour with Killswitch Engage.

Check out the band’s statement below.

"To our fans,
In light of recent events, As I Lay Dying will unfortunately not be taking part in the upcoming tour with Killswitch Engage. Given the circumstances, we feel that it is best for the band to be off the road while the current situation gets sorted. We’d like to thank all of our fans for their ongoing support at this difficult time.”

-Jordan, Nick, Phil, and Josh

 

As I Lay Dying´s Tim Lambesis arrested for alleged murder-for-hire

On May 7^th, As I Lay Dying lead singer, Tim Lambesis, was arrested in Oceanside (California) on suspicion of solicitation of murder charges in an alleged plot to hire a hitman to kill his estranged wife.

 

Authorities began to investigate Lambesis on Thursday (May 2^nd) after receiving a tip saying that the singer was trying to hire someone to murder his wife Meggan, but they only formally arrested him after Lambesis allegedly soliciting an undercover police officer to commit the act. Tim and Meggan Lambesis were married for 8 years, before Meggan filed for divorce in September 2012 citing “irreconcilable differences”. The couple had adopted three children from Ethiopia together.

As I Lay Dying frontman pleaded “not guilty” at his arraignment on Thursday May 9^th, having his bail settled at $3 million. It is said that Lambesis should make bail. If released he will have no contact with both his wife and three children, also having to wear a GPS monitoring device and accept travel restrictions. If convicted, he could face up to nine years in prison – the maximum exposure for solicitation of murder in the state of California.

Lambesis fellow band members issued an official statement on their Facebook page regarding the band´s frontman arrest

“To our fans,

As we post this, the legal process is taking its course and we have no more information than you do. There are many unanswered questions, and the situation will become clearer in the coming days and weeks. We’ll keep you informed as best we can.

Our thoughts right now are with Tim, his family, and with everyone else affected by this terrible situation – and with our fans, whom we love and draw strength from.

Thank you for understanding, and as always, for your support of As I Lay Dying.”

- Jordan, Nick, Phil, and Josh