It seems that y'all are always looking for bands that are creative and push boundaries and I think this album is one of the more unique Thrash albums that I've heard.
Stop the Bleeding is Tourniquet's debut album (1990) and is generally held in high regard (along with their second and third albums). When you listen to this you can tell that these guys are obviously talented musicians and songwriters and each song has a diversity of tempos and melodies. Ted Kirkpatrick is known for his technical and creative drumming, but there are great riffs and leads here as well as one of my favorite vocal performances by Guy Ritter. He shuffles back and forth between lower register and falsetto (that may be an acquired taste for some but I've really come to enjoy). There are parts of songs that sound like Slayer (such as the beginning of "Ark of Suffering" and others that are more reminiscent of Megadeth or Metallica (even a bit of the riffing later in that song). Then you have neo-classical influences and leads like the one in "Whitewashed Tomb" that sound like they could be off the Winds album. It all comes together and Tourniquet puts their own stamp on it.
This album didn't strike me right away, but it's gotten better and better over time. It's a little weird at first but I've come to see it as really an incredible album and unique in a good way. Some might be turned off by Christian references in the lyrics (which is probably the sole reason this album is not considered a classic), but for those who aren't ideologically opposed, this is a real gem. The lyrics mix theology, biblical stories, medical topics, and even stuff against animal abuse. The lyrics on the next two albums were more abstract and really took to emphasizing the medical themes and analogies, but Ritter also dropped the falsetto and I think the overall sound became less unique than this album.
I would recommend listening to at least the first four songs (if not the whole album) once through before judging. As I said, I continue to find little nuances on this album and it gets better every time. I'm not as well-versed as some of y'all, but I'm not aware of much that sounds like this (especially in 1990).
P.S. It's probably a coincidence but is this RC's own General Zod repping the album on Metal-Archives?: https://www.metal-archives.com/reviews/Tourniquet/Stop_the_Bleeding/474885/Zod/80902
