More than a year after his exit from the deeply troubled metalcore outfit As I Lay Dying, drummer Nick Pierce has finally addressed what happened — and why he walked away — in a new interview with Metal Drummers United.
Pierce‘s departure came during the now-infamous collapse of As I Lay Dying in 2024, when bassist/vocalist Ryan Neff and guitarist Ken Susi exited the band, followed soon after by guitarist Phil Sgrosso. The mass exodus marked the second time a lineup had abandoned vocalist Tim Lambesis, whose past includes a 2014 prison sentence for attempting to hire a hitman to murder his then-wife.
At the time, the departing members cited a toxic environment tied to Lambesis‘ behavior. While Susi previously went into detail on the situation, Pierce had largely stayed silent — until now. Which is great timing too, considering Lambesis’ ex-wife is also out there having some words about the man too.
In his interview, Pierce made it clear that the band knowingly gave Lambesis another chance, but ultimately came to regret it. His comments leave little ambiguity about where he places responsibility for the band’s implosion.
“We were all pretty stoked. Like we partially knew some of the predicaments that we were getting into with the pretense of Tim‘s past… and we were willing to give him that second — or second and a half chance — or whatever you want to call it. So we kind of blindly went into it hoping for the best and hoping that Tim had changed, and had changed for the better.”
Pierce described the early rehearsals as inspiring and creatively energizing, praising the chemistry between himself, Susi, Neff, and Sgrosso: “After playing that first song together and realizing what we could all do as a group, we were like, ‘Holy fuck, this is sick.’ … Everybody collaboratively fucking crushed.”
But that optimism didn’t last. Pierce explained that while he believes strongly in second chances — citing friendships with recovering addicts and former felons — Lambesis ultimately squandered the opportunity: “We gave Tim that second chance. That was my second chance to Tim. He fucking blew it. Completely fucking blew it. He made some really stupid fucking decisions. He blew it in the endgame.”
Pierce added that the fallout was sudden and brutal, hitting him personally at the worst possible moment: “I found out the band was breaking up on my birthday. It was a shit fucking predicament. Within 24 or 48 hours, I went from thinking I was going on tour in Europe to finding out the band was falling apart — all because of the shit that Tim had done.”
While Pierce said he doesn’t want to endlessly rehash the situation, he didn’t hide his frustration or regret: “My bad. I trusted the wrong fucking guy this time and so did everybody else. So, fuck us — it fucking happens.”
Enter your information below to get a daily update with all of our headlines and receive The Orchard Metal newsletter.