I have to say that I have not come across that many bands who say they are Christian yet are put under the banner of death-core; however, that is exactly how With Blood Comes Cleansing is labeled. Sounds like the two labels are essentially headed in opposite directions.

I have heard a few Christian rock and metal bands, from Stryper and Petra to Tourniquet and Sacrament. Granted, I do not have great exposure to metal from the Christian perspective, as they do not tend to get a lot of mainstream press or promotion. Being Christian, it is an area of music that I would like to explore a little more, if only there was more time to get to everything I wanted. As for With Blood Comes Cleansing, here is a band that has found a way to reconcile their faith with a style of music that has long been the haven of darker themes which often seem to be associated with Satan, even when that is the furthest thing from the truth. Perhaps bands like this will help show another use of extreme music.

With Blood Comes Cleansing hails from Atlanta, Georgia. With Horror, they are set to make their Victory Records debut, a move that will definitely give them an exposure boost and help spread their message. Horror is their second full-length album, following Golgotha, released on Blood and Ink Records in 2006. I have not heard that previous album, but I hear it is along similar lines to this, almost to a fault.

I was not quite sure what to expect with the music, maybe that each song would be a sermon, which seems to be the case with some Christian music I have been exposed to (like Stryper, although I have to admit to liking them back in the day). Fortunately, the vocals are firmly in the demonic (sic) growl/high pitched scream school, thereby making the lyrics more or less unintelligible. To that end, I cannot truly say how sermony or preachy they are. Not that there is anything wrong with having an overt message, we all know how in your face secular music can be and no one generally complains about that.

The music is catchy and very easy to slip into. The riffs are initially very death metal in style and speed, with incessant drums to match, before giving way to some seriously heavy hardcore-style breakdowns that got my head rocking before I could even tell what was happening. The vocals are just as brutal as the instrumental performances, literally pummeling your head, driving ever deeper in and taking hold until you have no control in the face of their brutality.