With their former lead singer Tim Lambesis in prison for having attempted to hire a hit man to kill his wife, Christian heavy metal group As I Lay Dying renamed itself Wovenwar, with Oh Sleeper's Shane Blay as their new frontman. Signed to Metal Blade Records, their first single dropped April 21, 2014, with their self-titled debut album planned for that summer.
As I Lay Dying (named after the book by William Faulkner) formed in 2001. The classic lineup consisted of Tim Lambesis (vocals), Jordan Mancino (drums), guitarists Nick Hipa and Phil Sgrosso, and bassist Clint Norris, who was replaced by Josh Gilbert in May 2007.
Hipa describes the band’s music as “brutal, energetic, melodic metal”; Mancino calls it “metal with ska breakdowns.” The band signed with Metal Blade Records in 2003 and spent 2006 supporting their album Shadows Are Security with opening slots for Slipknot and performances at Ozzfest events around the country.
Tim Lambesis was arrested on May 7, 2013, for allegedly trying to hire an undercover police officer to murder his estranged wife. The band was scheduled to tour with Killswitch Engage, Miss May I, and Affiance, kicking off May 30 in Oklahoma City and concluding July 8 in Joliet, IL.
Lambesis pleaded not guilty to a single charge of solicitation of murder. “Tim never had the intention to harm his wife,” said Lambesis’ defense attorney of the charges. “This whole thing was a set-up by a scumbag snitch, and then law enforcement ran with it.” Lambesis’ bail was lowered from $3 million to $2 million on May 17.
“Tim never had the intention to harm his wife,” said Lambesis’ defense attorney of the charges accusing his client of ordering a hit on his wife. “This whole thing was a set-up by a scumbag snitch, and then law enforcement ran with it.”
Out on bail, Lambesis announced that his comedic metal band Austrian Death Machine would release its third album Triple Brutal, thanks to raising $80,000 via online crowd-funding. In late February, 2014, Lambesis pleaded guilty, admitting that he solicited the murder of his wife.
Wovenwar released new singles under their new name in July 2014, “The Mason” and “Profane,” before making their local live debut August 8 at Soma (followed the same night by a record release show at Brick by Brick, a formerly-closed venue the band members had recently co-purchased a stake in).
They kicked off 2015 by touring the U.S. with Periphery, running January 12 (Atlanta) through February 14 (Philadelphia). With a new video for their song "Death to Rights," they followed up by touring with In Flames and All That Remains, kicking off February 20 in Agoura Hills, CA and concluding March 18 in Milwaukee, WI. That summer, a video was released for their track "Archers," from the band's self-titled debut album.
In 2016, Phil Sgrosso left Wovenwar and launched a new hardcore-influenced band called Poison Headache, alongside Andy Kutka (Internal Affairs) and Kyle Rosa (Thieves and Liars, Longstay), with a self-titled album released that June via Metal Blade Records.