KEN SUSI: How I Ended Up Joining ALL THAT REMAINS

In a new interview with RichardMetalFan, former UNEARTH and AS I LAY DYING guitarist Ken Susi spoke about how he ended up officially joining ALL THAT REMAINS as the replacement for Jason Richardson. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I  called [ALL THAT REMAINS guitarist] Mike Martin not too long ago just to say 'what's up?'. I can't remember why. I just randomly call my friends... So Mike and I have, in the past, gone to Bruins games and Red Sox games, and sometimes you just meet up for chicken, or if Adam [Dutkiewicz, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE guitarist and acclaimed ALL THAT REMAINS and UNEARTH producer] comes in town, 'cause he lives on the West Coast now, we'll meet up and we'll have food or something. So it's always good to see Mike… I went to go see LAMB OF GOD and KILLSWITCH and I bumped into Mike at the show and we made plans to hang out. So I called him and he was just kind of, like, 'Hey, dude, I have a baby coming,' or whatever, and he's, like, 'Do you think you could fill in for me? And I was like, 'Oh, yeah. No worries.' And at that point he told me that he was suspecting that something was up between Jason and the band. And he was, like, 'I don't know who's gonna play guitar on this tour or whatever, but I would love for you to at least cover for me.' And I just said, 'Hey, let me take a stab at the stuff. Let me see how insane the guitar stuff is.' 'Cause I'm a good guitar player. A lot of people don't know my abilities, because I'm a songwriter first and I don't like to shred over the top of every single song I write. So people know that I solo, people know that I contribute and I can play, but they also know that I'm not a wanker. So I was just kind of, like, 'Let me go through all this stuff. Let me see what's up.' And so I started learning all the music anyway 'cause I agreed to fill in, and I just started learning the solos while I learned everything. And at that point Phil [Labonte, ALL THAT REMAINS singer] was just, like, 'All right, this is great. Awesome. Let's move forward.' And it got to the point where we met up and I've been playing with Mike and learning stuff and we've been going back and forth with tunes and all that other stuff."

Susi went on to say that there has already been talk of him contributing musical ideas to ALL THE REMAINS' next studio album, which would be the follow-up to 2025's "Antifragile", the band's only effort to feature Richardson.

"The craziest thing is that while I was learning the ALL THE REMAINS stuff and the tours in May, I was writing so much music," Susi explained. "It was just one of those moments where I have this prolific — so much music's flowing out of me. I had a lot of family stuff happen. I just had a newborn son, and my father got sick, and I had all these really emotional things, and I had nowhere to put my feelings. And out of nowhere, music just started pouring out of me. So I went to the band and I just said, 'Hey, guys, do you like any of this stuff? Because I know that you just wrote a record with Jason, which is awesome, and now he's out of the band. Do you guys need help with writing and all this other stuff?' And they were really respectful and receptive. And I just said, 'What do you think?' And they seemed to be really into it. And at that point, I thought they were gonna make an announcement about 'you're touring with us' and it turned into, 'Hey, you're in the band.' [Laughs] Well, Phil called me and he was, like, 'Hey, how would you like to play in the band permanently?' And I was, like, 'It's such an honor.' Because they've seen me play all the songs and shred the solos and I'm sending them videos so they know I don't suck."

Ken added: "To be honest with you, I'm a very polarizing person, where I go on stage and I run around and I have a good time. Some people take me as a joke, so they don't know how good I am ability-wise. But a guitar player will tell you how good I am, or not, or whatever. I don't know. Everyone has an opinion. My thing is all I can say is the announcement that was made, I've never felt more re-energized to play music and also so loved in a way where people make me… People talk so much shit online that you never hear anything good, and ALL THE REMAINS camp as well as their fans have accepted me so quickly and so confidently that I expected so much more turmoil and so much more hatred or, 'Oh, this guy one time, he missed a riff' or something. You know what I mean. Everyone's down to just talk shit. But, man, I feel so great that everyone's been so nice to me."

Former UNEARTH and AS I LAY DYING guitarist Ken Susi has officially joined ALL THAT REMAINS as the replacement for Jason Richardson.

Last July, Richardson exited ALL THAT REMAINS after a nearly seven-year run with the band.

Richardson joined ALL THAT REMAINS on lead guitar after the tragic passing of the band's lead guitarist and co-founding member Oliver "Oli" Herbert in late 2018.

When Susi announced his addition to ALL THAT REMAINS on January 12, he wrote in a statement: "I'm incredibly honored to be joining ALL THAT REMAINS as their new guitarist. My connection to this band goes back to the late '90s, when I first met Mike [Martin, guitar], Oli and Phil [Labonte, vocals] at underground shows in Western Massachusetts. Those early days shaped so much of who I am, and coming back together now truly feels full circle.

"I'm also deeply honored to step in for my late friend Oli Herbert. Oli was not only an extraordinary musician, but a close friend whose presence and influence will always be felt. His shoes can never truly be filled, and I carry his spirit with me every time I pick up the guitar.

"After decades of friendship, shared history, and mutual support, it means everything to get on stage with this band and contribute to a project I genuinely believe in. I can't wait to hit the road and share what we've been working on with all of you.

"See you out there."

ALL THAT REMAINS recently announced a spring 2026 U.S. headlining tour. Support on the trek will come from BORN OF OSIRIS and DEAD EYES.

Richardson had previously collaborated with such artists as FALLING IN REVERSE, POLYPHIA, AUGUST BURNS RED, VEIL OF MAYA and WITHIN DESTRUCTION.

Herbert began playing guitar at 14. He co-founded ALL THAT REMAINS with singer Phil Labonte in 1998.

ALL THAT REMAINS's tenth studio album, "Antifragile", came out on January 31, 2025. The follow-up to 2018's "Victim Of The New Disease" included the four singles that band had released in the months leading up to the LP's arrival: "Divine" in May 2024, "Let You Go" in June 2024, "No Tomorrow" in August 2024 and "Forever Cold" in November 2024.

"Divine" marked ALL THAT REMAINS's first original new material since the passing of Herbert. "Divine" also ushered in a period of rebirth for ALL THAT REMAINS, which is, for the first in its career, 100 percent independent and will be releasing future material on its own label — All That Remains Records.

In July 2023, longtime ALL THAT REMAINS drummer Jason Costa announced his departure from the group, citing "deeply personal" reasons that "have nothing to do with any drama or anything within the band."

Jason was the featured drummer on the previous six ALL THAT REMAINS albums: "Overcome" (2008),"For We Are Many" (2010),"A War You Cannot Win" (2012),"The Order Of Things" (2015),"Madness" (2017) and "Victim Of The New Disease" (2018).

Back in March 2022, Costa left ALL THAT REMAINS' U.S. tour in order to "deal with some personal matters." He was replaced by Anthony Barone, who had previously played with BENEATH THE MASSACRE and SHADOW OF INTENT.

In 2023, ALL THAT REMAINS's breakthrough album "The Fall Of Ideals", was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association Of America (RIAA) for sales in excess of 500,000 copies in the United States.

In 2022, ALL THAT REMAINS embarked on "The Fall Of Ideals" 15th-anniversary tour.

"The Fall Of Ideals" was reissued in November 2021. The best-selling title features such fan favorites as "This Calling", "Six" and "The Air That I Breathe".