California metalcore five-piece As I Lay Dying’s latest record is The Powerless Rise, and on its Twitter page, the band recently dubbed its current tour “The Showerless Rise.”

“There’s always a standard, like, ‘For this tour, these are nice venues with nice backstage areas, it’s comfortable, we can relax outside the bus,’” 25-year-old guitarist Phil Sgrosso explained by phone before a soundcheck in Buffalo, NY last week. 

“(But) in some cities, you’ve got nothing. Your bus, that’s where you’re going to be chillin’ all day, and dudes are like, ‘I haven’t showered in five days.’ And it’s pretty gross, ‘cause these shows are getting pretty hot and sweaty.” 

In addition to heat and sweat, fans can expect to hear a handful of new songs if they check the band out Friday, Oct. 1 at the Garrick Centre.  Sgrosso sees The Powerless Rise, which was released in May, as a logical progression from their fourth record, 2007’s An Ocean Between Us. 

“I view it as a smooth continuance,” said Sgrosso, who is the band’s primary songwriter. “I think that album definitely was our defining album after (2003’s Frail Words Collapse and 2005’s Shadows Are Security), and I think we all came together as a cohesive unit. 

“We just liked what we were writing, liked the new ideas that we were incorporating, so for this album, we thought, let’s keep that going. … I think in subtle ways, with every element of the band, thing progressed.” 

“ We all really want to do something special for this genre of music.

Phil Sgrosso, guitarist, As I Lay Dying

As I Lay Dying want to keep things interesting for the listener.

“I think that ultimately that was the goal. Let’s not make any part boring. Let’s really focus on keeping it fast-paced (so) when you listen to it from start to finish, you’re like, ‘Woah, what just happened?’” 

Writing the record was also in part a response to what the band was seeing other metal acts doing.

“We all really want to do something special for this genre of music. We feel like it’s been getting pretty watered down and, I guess, diluted,” Sgrosso said.

“I always bring up, from Tenacious D, ‘juicy.’ There’s (no one doing what) we want to hear a metal band do, so that was kind of the drive: ‘Let’s make this song better,’ ‘That melody sucks, let’s get a better melody,’ ‘Let’s play that melody a little differently.’ 

“We’re just always pushing ourselves to become better.” 

The band’s played throughout Canada a number of times and is looking forward to visiting The Great White North once again.

“It’ll be nice to be back in Canada,” Sgrosso said. “The show’s are always pretty insane for us.”

Also on the bill are All That Remains, Unearth and Carnifex. AILD will be signing autographs for 30 minutes as soon as the doors open at 7 p.m. 

Hopefully they’ll get a chance to shower before then.