The album was promoted with three singles; "Man Proposes, God Disposes", "Privilege of Being", and "We Think So Ill of You", and was planned to be followed by short series of concerts, of which only one took place before Sprain's disbandment in October 2023.

[2] Sprain was formed in Los Angeles by frontman Alex Kent and bassist April Gerloff in early 2018 and self-released their eponymous debut EP later that year.

"[3][4] Their first album, As Lost Through Collision, was released on September 4, 2020 after signing with experimental label The Flenser and marked a sharp transition into heavier and abrasive music.

Fortunately, they quickly found a new percussionist, Clint Dodson, who Kent described as just "some guy April Gerloff [the bassist] knew,"[3] and recording began.

Kent said that the process of making the album was difficult and expressed relief that it was finally released, as there were times when he doubted if it would ever see the light of day.

The mixing process was also reported to be difficult, requiring a collection of multiple years of material recorded across four separate studios to be compiled.

On the specific topic of Christian religious imagery present throughout the album, Kent described his Catholic upbringing and said, "As a result, I am quite familiar with the religion" and that it heavily influences him due to being "seeped in it" throughout his youth.

[7] The cover art of The Lamb as Effigy depicts nine pictures of two indiscernible men facing adjacent walls of a room with differing poses with backs turned to the camera, arranged in a grid formation.

All tracks are written by Alexander Kent.Following the release of The Lamb as Effigy, Sprain embarked on a planned tour of the United States.