As one of the premier names in Christian death metal in the early to mid-2000s, With Blood Comes Cleansing burned fast and bright, releasing only two albums before disbanding in 2008. The band remained dormant for more than a decade before their surprising resurgence in 2022. After a few singles and lineup changes (including the addition of Searching Serenity's Robert Manzone as the new lead vocalist), WBCC is finally fully back with a heavy, powerful new album. And after all these years, they sound as good as ever.

With Blood Comes Cleansing is the epitome of a Christian death metal album. Like some secular bands and albums in the genre, WBCC tells violent and gory stories here. Unlike those bands and albums, however, said stories actually bring glory to Jesus Christ, as each song details the excruciating death of one of Jesus' followers from the early Church, each of whom was martyred for his faith. It's a very Hebrews 11-inspired album; it's also bookended by Joshua 1:9 and Revelation 21:4, verses which declare God's sovereignty and ultimate victory over death.

The first full track, appropriately enough, is about the first martyr in the New Testament. "The Battered (Stephen)" assaults the listener with blast beats and pinch harmonics, as Manzone's otherworldly gutturals ferociously recount Stephen's incredible boldness and willingness to not only give his life for the sake of Christ, but also preach the Gospel to his killers ("brutally pelted with unrelenting force / the stones bashed and they bruised without end … trusting in the Lord for salvation / granted for his unshakable faith … sharing the holy word of Christ with those who sent him to death"). "The Inverted Crucifixion (Peter)" introduces some beatdown hardcore in the chorus, which features vocals from Daryn LaMontagne of Southpaw. The song leans a bit more into Eastern Orthodox and/or Catholic beliefs, such as the notion of the veneration of saints and Peter's upside-down crucifixion. Though these ideas aren't Scriptural, the idea of Peter insisting on being crucified upside-down because he's unworthy to be crucified like Christ is inspiring and challenges me to be more mindful of my unworthiness compared to Jesus.

From here, the album continues to descend into heavier, filthier, gnarlier death metal. "The Drawn (Mark)" hits hard and brings in Michael Sasser, former WBCC vocalist for their 2006 album Golgotha. Sasser and Manzone sound great together, as the band continues destroying the listener's eardrums. "The Flayed (Bartholomew)" changes the formula, starting the song with the pre-breakdown *ting* and following it up with furious guitars and vocals from both Manzone and Kyle Medina of Bodysnatcher. The song has some of the album's most intense, gruesome lyrics, as well, telling of the ruthless murder of Bartholomew: "Bartholomew was flayed for the sake of Jesus' name / his body torn limb from limb, skin from bone / beaten senseless for what he believed in ... unbelievers gathered for the brutal sacrifice / enduring the agonizing torture, his skin was stripped and pulled." It's really not for the faint of heart.

With Blood Comes Cleansing is a tour de force, coming in at just under 24 minutes but packing the punch of a true heavyweight. It's intense, it's brutal, it's just downright heavy, and it's one of the finest metal albums of the year thus far. This is not easy listening, but it's well worth your time if death metal is your kind of thing. Welcome back, WBCC - hopefully this is only the beginning.

- Review date: 4/12/25, written by Scott Fryberger of Jesusfreakhideout.com