SAN DIEGO — The future of San Diego’s Grammy Award-nominated Christian metalcore band As I Lay Dying is shrouded in mystery following the abrupt departures in two weeks of four of the five-man group’s members. Its tour manager has also quit.

The band’s sole remaining member is lead vocalist Tim Lambesis, who was released from prison in late 2016 after serving three years for attempting to solicit the murder of his first wife, Meggan. She subsequently divorced him and was given custody of their three adopted children from Ethiopia.

None of As I Lay Dying’s recently departed four members have specifically disclosed what prompted their decisions to leave the band. But in individual statements on social media, they have cited a variety of factors.

Guitarist Ken Susi stated that his “personal morals have recently been tested to a breaking point.” Drummer Nick Pierce wrote that he needed to “distance myself from the band in an effort to retain my personal health and integrity.” Bassist/vocalist Ryan Neff was more vague, saying that he chose to leave the band “after much reflection.”

The most detailed explanation, while also lacking specific details, came from guitarist Phil Sgrosso. He was the last of As I Lay Dying’s four members to quit. He announced his departure on Wednesday, one week after Neff became the first member to leave the group.

“It’s clear we’re in a difficult and serious situation,” Sgrosso wrote in his statement on social media.

“Simply put, recent actions have shown that As I Lay Dying no longer offers a healthy or safe environment for anyone involved — whether creatively, personally, or professionally. After witnessing some concerning patterns of behavior, I’ve realized that I can no longer, in good conscience, enable further actions that could negatively affect anyone working within this space.

“For these reasons, I feel it’s in my best interest to completely distance myself, both creatively and personally, from As I Lay Dying.”

This swift sequence of tumultuous developments prompted the cancellation of the 24-year-old band’s 25-city fall European tour. It was scheduled to open Nov. 15 in Wurzburg, Germany.

The fact that Lambesis is now the suddenly truncated As I Lay Dying’s only remaining member also casts some doubt on the scheduled Nov. 15 release of the band’s aptly titled new album, “Through the Storms Ahead.”

A representative for Napalm Records, the label As I Lay Dying is signed to, did not respond to questions Friday from the San Diego Union-Tribune about the fate of the album and whether Lambesis — who has remained silent about the upheavals that have recently rocked the band — was available for comment.

Lambesis, 44, is an Arizona native who grew up in San Diego. He founded As I Lay Dying in 2001 and is the sole member to be in each of the numerous lineups of the band. An alum of Solana Beach’s Santa Fe Christian school, he subsequently became a religious studies major for a time at the Jerry Falwell-led Liberty University in Virginia.

With Lambesis as its driving force, the first iteration of As I Lay Dying released its debut album, “Beneath The Encasing of Ashes,” in 2001. The band went on to win four San Diego Music Awards and, in 2008, earned a Grammy nomination in the Best Metal Performance category.

Lambesis was arrested in 2013 after offering to pay for the murder of his first wife. The “hit man” he solicited was an undercover sheriff’s deputy who testified when the case went to trial. The vocalist was released in late 2016, after serving nearly three years of his six-year sentence.

In 2017, after completing his parole requirements, Lambesis publicly apologized for the actions that had led to his incarceration.

“I’ve remained silent to the public since expressing remorse at my sentencing because time seemed like the best way to promote healing,” Lambesis wrote in a lengthy statement on Facebook.

“Today marks the first opportunity to freely apologize without any motivation to gain favor from the courts, as I have now completed the entirety of my legal sentence (including the completion of all parole/probation requirements). Let it be clear that no amount of time served can right my wrongs. …

“Words cannot begin to express how deeply sorry I am for the hurt that I have caused. There is no defense for what I did, and I look back on the person I became with as much disdain as many of you likely do.”

Lambesis and As I Lay Dying’s other four members at the time reunited in 2018 and performed their first concert back together at San Diego’s all-ages Soma Live.

“We’re so very, very thankful to be up here,” he told the audience at the sold-out show. “We’re not only thankful for you guys, we’re thankful for each other, we’re thankful for the relationships that we’ve rebuilt and we’re very, very excited about. Thank you for the opportunity to play music together again.”

As I Lay Dying’s 2018 reunion didn’t last long after the band released a new album, “Shaped By Fire,” in 2019. (It was abruptly removed from online streaming services nearly two weeks ago, although there are conflicting reports about the reason.)

Guitarist Nick Hipa left As I Lay Dying band in 2020, followed by drummer Jordan Mancino and bassist/vocalist Josh Gilbert, who both quit in 2022. Lambesis and guitarist Sgrosso then hired Susi, Pierce and Neff to replace them.

Now, following two weeks of upheaval and the departures of Susi, Pierce, Neff and Sgrosso, Lambesis is the last man still on board the otherwise abandoned musical ship that was As I Lay Dying.

The exact reasons for the latest defections from the band are, at least for now, unclear. But Lambesis’ third wife, Dany Ciara, released a statement on Oct. 24 refuting as “completely false” rumors posted online that she had been subjected to domestic violence by Lambesis.

It remains to be seen when or if Lambesis will comment on his band’s apparent implosion or if he will seek to form a new edition of the band — and how audiences will react if he does.

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