Released in 1990, Stop the Bleeding showcases the incredible musical abilities of Tourniquet.  The lineup for Stop The Bleeding was Guy Ritter (Vocals), Gary Lenair (Guitars), and Ted Kirkpatrick (drums).  Additional Musicians Mark Lewis (Guitar) and Erik Jan James (Bass) were listed but contributed very little to the actual production of the album (Eric James didn't play a single note, Mark Lewis played some of the more difficult guitar tracks).  The album has a unique sound (as most Tourniquet albums do).  The music is superb and super fast in places, but the high shrilly screams of Guy Ritter really get annoying over extended listening sessions.  Overall a great debut album for an Incredible Band.
Psycho Surgery, released in 1991, is speedmetal at it't finest.  Possessing more of a solidified linup, Tourniquet's creativity and agressiveness reached new heights with this release.  Guy Ritter's vocals came down out of the annoying and the guitar got even faster in places.  Ted Kirkpatrick's drumming is phenomenal.  The new additions to the band for this release were Victor Macias (bass) and Eric Mendez (Guitar).  Filled with medical terminology, driving guitars, and great lyrics, Psycho Surgery is sure to satisfy any metal craving.
Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance is one of my personal favorites.  Released in 1992, the sound once again seemed to evolve from the previous album except this time it slowed down just a bit and took on more deep end cruch and lower vocals.  The guitar riffs are still as technical as can be, but the straight speed metal sound of Psycho Surgery and Stop the Bleeding are not present.  Guy Ritter's vocals are not heard as much since he took a less active role with this album.  Gary Lenair took the lead role on many of the songs, which sounds terrific.  The songs are powerfully heavy while retaining enough speed and technicality to make even the rhythmically challenged head-bang.
The Intense Live Series is a great example of Tourniquet's musical ability, but shows why some people can't sing heavy metal.  Released after Guy Ritter left the band and before Luke Easter was added, this CD features Les Carlson (Bloodgood) on vocals.  It didn't work.  He had a great voice for the group he was in and their music was cool, but he did not mesh with Tourniquet's sound at all.  The CD is basically a release of older material with a cover of an older Bloodgood song.  As can be expected though, the musicianship is awesome.  If you can, check out the medly, it is worth it for the music.
Released in 1994, Vanishing Lessons marked a new beginning for the band as two band members, Guy Ritter and Eric Mendez, left the band.  Luke Easter joined the band to take over the lead vocal role while Aaron Guerra was added after the album was recorded to replace Eric Mendez on Guitar.  This also is one of my personal favorites.  It marks a definite change in the Tourniquet sound since the speed metal was left completely behind.  Luke Easter's vocals are outstanding while the entire album has a sound that is good from start to finish.  The album is still quite heavy but in more of a rhythm sense.  The frenzied guitar leads are absent but the vocals of Luke Easter more than make up for it.
Carry the Wounded, 1995, marks the beginning of Aaron Guerra's recording career with Tourniquet.  The album itself is quite enjoyable but is quite different from any other Tourniquet album.  Containing only 5 songs, Carry the Wounded was an experiment for the band in between normal Tourniquet albums.  The sounds are much softer, greatly showing off Luke Easter's voice. 
Released in 1996, Collected Works is just that, the Collected works of Tourniquet.  You find on this album a great selection of songs from the previous Tourniquet albums.    The two new songs on the album, Perfect Night for a Hanging and The Hand Trembler, are two of my favorite Tourniquet songs.  The are incredibly heavy but have a feel unlike any other Tourniquet song.  The two new songs also mark the last recorded effort from Gary Lenair (guitar) and Victor Macias (bass). 
Released in 1997 with Benson Records (a surprising label for Tourniquet) Crawl To China is an interesting album for the band.  Extremely diverse, the album has head-banging rhythms (Eveloped in Python) to an incredible ballad that will leave any Christian with tears in their eyes  (If I was there).  Recorded as a three man band (Ted Kirkpatrick, Luke Easter, and Aaron Guerra) Crawl to China shows a new direction in creativity and experimentation.  The lyrics are very challenging while the music is very diverse, techinical, simple, and strange in different places.  This album also debuts the songs writing skills of Luke Easter and Aaron Guerra. 
After doing several acoustic shows and after having several requests for an acoustic album, Tourniquet felt the best time to do it was after their negotiated release from Benson Records.  Released independently in 1998, Acoustic Archives displays the incredible guitar skills of Aaron Guerra.  Luke Easter once again comes through powerfully with his performance on vocals.  Nine Tourniquet metal songs were redone acoustically with great success.  The songs really do retain the feel and style that was present with the electric versions.   Acoustic Archives also contains one metal song that is extremely fast and technical.  Aaron Guerra's guitar playing is simply masterful while Ted Kirkpatrick shows why he is one of the best drummers in the business.  Entitled "Trivializing the Momentous, Complicating the Obvious" the song marks a new direction for Tourniquet which is very, very promising.
Microscopic View of a Telescopic Realm, Tourniquet's 10th release, proves why Tourniquet is hailed as one of the greatest Christian bands ever.  The songs contain some of the most intricate music Tourniquet has released.  Aaron Guerra proves himself as a very worthy guitarist, silencing many of his critics.  Luke's voice rings clear as he sings in many different styles on this CD.  The cd itself is very heavy, and yet very melodic.  Songs like The Tomb of GIlgamesh, The Skeezix Dilemma Part II, and Besprinkled in Scarlett Horror show that Tourniquet can still head bang with the best (they probably are the best) while songs like Martyr's Pose and Indulgence by Proxy show their innovation and willingness to use new and different sounds.  Ted's drumming is phenomenal, as usuall.  Aaron Guerra takes more vocals than past CD's and Luke shows the versatility of his voice.  If you are looking for a CD that will take you back to the Good old days of Metal, but won't sound like a rehash of old material, this is the CD for you!
Where Moth and Rust Destroy!!!!  Due out March 25 on Metal Blade!
"Yes, Its Heavy" (Ted Kirkpatrick)