Philip Joseph Sgrosso (born September 16, 1985) is an American musician, best known as former guitarist of the

metalcore Metalcore is a broadly defined fusion genre combining elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk, originating in the 1990s United States and becoming popular in the 2000s. Metalcore typically has aggressive verses and melodic choruses, combined ...

band

As I Lay Dying ''As I Lay Dying'' is a 1930 Southern Gothic novel by American author William Faulkner. Faulkner's fifth novel, it is consistently ranked among the best novels of the 20th century.The New Lifetime Reading Plan: The Classical Guide to World Lit ...

, the rhythm guitarist of the band

Wovenwar Wovenwar was an American metal band from Southern California, formed in 2013. They released their self-titled debut album in 2014. The band's musical style on the album has been described as alternative metal, melodic metalcore, hard rock, an ...

, former touring guitarist for Nails, and the current lead guitarist for

Saosin Saosin ( or ) is an American rock band formed in 2003 in Orange County, California. The group originally consisted of Beau Burchell, Justin Shekoski, Zach Kennedy and Anthony Green. They released their debut EP, '' Translating the Name'', i ...

Career

Before joining the band that jumpstarted his musical career, Sgrosso was a part of a local act known as Tomra, a

melodic metalcore Melodic metalcore is a fusion genre, incorporating elements of melodic death metal and metalcore; it has a heavy emphasis on melodic instrumentation, distorted guitar tones, palm mute, palm muting, double bass drumming, blast beats, metalcore-sty ...

band from San Diego, which disbanded in 2003. Joining As I Lay Dying at the age of 17, Sgrosso had honed his creative talents as one of the songwriters on 2005's ''

Shadows Are Security ''Shadows Are Security'' is the third studio album by American metalcore band As I Lay Dying. The album was released on June 14, 2005, through Metal Blade Records, and was produced by lead vocalist Tim Lambesis, guitarist Phil Sgrosso and Steve ...

''. His work with the band extends from solely instrumentation, with producing credits on the bands latter releases. Throughout his tenure with

, the band was named "Artist of the Year" at the

San Diego Music Awards The San Diego Music Awards is an awards show held annually in San Diego, California, United States, to recognize the best artists and bands in local music. The awards show benefits the San Diego Music Foundation, a non-profit organization dedica ...

in 2005, 2007, and 2008, and was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for the song "Nothing Left" in 2008. Sgrosso received the "Ultimate Metal God" award from

MTV2 MTV2 (formerly M2) is an American pay television Cable television, channel owned by the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global, through PMN’s MTV Entertainment Group Subdivision. The channel launched initially as an all-music ...

in 2007. Through six studio albums and one split release, As I Lay Dying sold more than 1,000,000 albums worldwide, with their DVD, '' This Is Who We Are'', being

Certified Gold Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

within one month of its release. As I Lay Dying's sixth album, '' Awakened'', was released on September 25, 2012, to high critical acclaim. Following the incarceration of As I Lay Dying vocalist

Tim Lambesis Timothy Peter Lambesis (born November 21, 1980) is an American musician, producer, and songwriter. He is best known as the founding member, lead vocalist, and the sole continuous member of the metalcore band As I Lay Dying. Lambesis was arre ...

in 2013, the remaining members of the band formed

with

Oh, Sleeper Oh, Sleeper is an American metalcore band from Fort Worth, Texas that formed in 2006 with former members of Terminal (American band), Terminal. In over a decade's span, Oh, Sleeper has released four full-length albums, two EPs, and toured world ...

guitarist Shane Blay. They released their debut album, ''

'', in 2014 via

Metal Blade Records Metal Blade Records (often shortened to Metal Blade) is an American independent record label founded by Brian Slagel in 1982 based in the U.S. state of California. The label primarily focuses on heavy metal. History Metal Blade Records was ...

. As I Lay Dying reunited in June 2018. While touring on the

Mayhem Festival The Mayhem Festival is a metal festival that takes place during the summer. The inaugural season took place in 2008; the festival later became an annual event across the United States. Most years also included a single date in either Montreal or ...

in 2012, Sgrosso pulled double-duty performing with As I Lay Dying and

Slipknot The slip knot is a stopper knot which is easily undone by pulling the tail ( working end). The slip knot is related to the running knot, which will release when the standing end is pulled. Both knots are identical and are composed of a slipp ...

, filling in for

Jim Root James Donald Root (born October 2, 1971) is an American guitarist. He is one of two guitarists for heavy metal band Slipknot, in which he is designated #4, as well as the former lead guitarist for rock band Stone Sour. Life and career Ro ...

on the first leg of the run. Beginning in 2016, he became a permanent fixture to

's touring lineup, taking over after Justin Shekoski's departure. Sgrosso is also a touring guitar player for American

powerviolence Powerviolence (sometimes written as power violence) is a chaotic and fast subgenre of hardcore punk which is closely related to thrashcore and grindcore. In contrast with grindcore, which is a "crossover" idiom containing musical aspects of hea ...

band Nails. Sgrosso also has a band called

Poison Headache Poison Headache is an American thrash metal band that formed in 2010. The band consists of guitarist, bassist, and vocalist Phil Sgrosso, vocalist and guitarist Andy Kukta and drummer Kyle Rosa. History The band began in 2010 as a project of Phi ...

with him playing guitars, bass, and vocals, Andy Kutka (formerly of Internal Affairs) on vocals and guitar and Kyle Rosa (formerly of

Thieves and Liars ''Thieves and Liars'' () is a 2006 Puerto Rican film directed by Ricardo Méndez Matta. It was Puerto Rico's submission to the 79th Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepted as a nominee. Plot Th ...

) on drums and they are signed to

. On October 30, 2024, Following the departures of three bandmates, Sgrosso announced his departure from As I Lay Dying, citing that the band "no longer offers a healthy or safe environment for anyone involved". He was the last remaining longterm member of the band.

Discography

As I Lay Dying * ''

'' (2005) * '' A Long March: The First Recordings'' (compilation, 2006) * ''

An Ocean Between Us ''An Ocean Between Us'' is the fourth studio album by American metalcore band As I Lay Dying, released on August 21, 2007, by Metal Blade Records. It debuted at No. 8 on the ''Billboard'' 200, with sales close to 39,500. The album includes the Gr ...

'' (2007) * ''

The Powerless Rise ''The Powerless Rise'' is the fifth studio album by American metalcore band As I Lay Dying. The album was released on May 7, 2010 in Europe, and on May 11, 2010 in the United States. ''The Powerless Rise'' debuted at No. 10 on the ''Billboard'' ...

'' (2010) * ''

Decas ''Decas'' is the second compilation album by American metalcore band As I Lay Dying. It features three newly recorded songs, four cover songs, four remixes and one re-recording. The album was released through Metal Blade Records on November 4, 2 ...

'' (compilation, 2011) * '' Awakened'' (2012) * ''

Shaped by Fire ''Shaped by Fire'' is the seventh studio album by American metalcore band As I Lay Dying. It was released on September 20, 2019, through Nuclear Blast. The album was produced by the band themselves and is the follow-up to the group's sixth album, ...

'' (2019) * '' Through Storms Ahead'' (2024) Wovenwar * ''

'' (2014) * ''

Honor Is Dead ''Honor Is Dead'' is the second studio album by American heavy metal band Wovenwar. It was released on October 21, 2016, via Metal Blade Records. The album, unlike its predecessor, was written with contributions from all the five members, wh ...

'' (2016) Poison Headache * ''Poison Headache'' (2016) Author & Punisher * '' Krüller'' (2022) (session guitar)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sgrosso, Phil Living people American heavy metal guitarists 1985 births American performers of Christian music As I Lay Dying (band) members Wovenwar members 21st-century American guitarists Musicians from San Diego People from Mission Viejo, California Guitarists from California