Christian thrash metal. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, right? It probably is in most cases but this is not so with Tourniquet. These believers have no problem nailing you to the cross with riff after riff. Stop the Bleeding was their debut album, released in 1990, just when thrash was getting its ass kicked by grunge and groove metal. This is not a pure thrash album though, it's mixed up with speed and groove metal parts and quite a few screeching falsetto's as the icing on the cake.

The band wastes no time and gets down to business from the get go with opener The Test for Leprosy, a mid-tempo thrasher that gets a little groovy halfway through, only to start thrashing again, eventually kicking you out with a great solo. It also showcases the variety of vocal styles used throughout the album. Guy Ritter employs vehement falsettos, screeches, shouts, you name it. Second track Ready or Not is where his falsetto truly shines, a raging thrasher that never lets up and before you know it you'll be yelling the chorus everywhere you go, turning the bathroom break at work into the most epic moment of your day. This is followed by what is probably the best song on the album, Ark of Suffering, a track about animal abuse that thrashes and grinds, featuring a fantastic vocal performance by Ritter and once again a tremendous solo. Overall the musicianship is just top notch, with melodic yet thrashing riffing, technical and pounding drumming and audible(!) twisting and turning basswork.

On the whole it is quite evident that this is a Christian band (the song You Get What You Pray For is a giveaway, despite it being another highlight of the album) and the lyrics can get a little preachy now and then but the songs are so infectious that it never becomes bothersome. The first half of the album is stronger than the second half with mainly closer Harlot Widow and the Virgin Bride failing to hold my interest for long. That's all there is to complain about with most of the songs kicking your ass and rocking your socks off. I can't compare it to any of their later albums because I haven't heard them but on its own Stop the Bleeding is worth checking out for any fan of thrash and speed metal that can get past the lyrical themes and the idea of listening to a Christian band.