Tourniquet

Tourniquet came together as a Los Angeles-based thrash metal trio in 1990, with Luke Easter handling vocals, Aaron Guerra on guitar and vocals, and Ted Kirkpatrick behind the drums; Kirkpatrick also served as the band’s primary songwriter. Their sound drew its strongest inspiration from Iron Maiden, a debt audible in the propulsive gallops, intricate arrangements, and lyrically reflective content that marked their recordings. Far from a conventional metal act, the group frequently dismantled their material for acoustic performances and earned positive coverage in outlets such as Modern Drummer, Guitar for the Practicing Musician, and Guitar Player. The albums they issued over the ensuing decade were Stop the Bleeding in 1990, Psycho Surgery in 1992, Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance in 1994, Vanishing Lessons in 1995, Crawl to China in 1997, and Microscopic View of Telescopic Realm in 2000. On August 19, 2022, drummer and chief songwriter Ted Kirkpatrick passed away at age 62.