Tourniquet's Ted Kirkpatrick Passes Away

Drummer of Christian metal band Tourniquet, Ted Kirkpatrick passed away on August 19th. About 4 months ago, Ted was experiencing chest pain and unusual shortness of breath. Up until this point, Ted had not been in a hospital in 40 years and all covid tests came up negative, to the end. After several doctor visits to a general practitioner, Ted was referred to see a pulmonologist who conducted many tests and an accurate diagnosis was made of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a rare terminal lung disease of which there is no cure. 

His wife, Cristy writes, "This is Cristy, Ted's wife. I have some very sad news to share. My beloved husband went to be with the Lord today, August 19, 2022. He was surrounded by his family and loved ones. It was a blessing to see first-hand Ted's amazing passion for so many things that captivated him for life, and it was humbling to stand by and witness his genius, creativity and seemingly never-ending natural talent. I know many of you are broken-hearted and certainly Ted's wish would be to celebrate his memory through his music through Tourniquet." 

Ted was able to share a few thoughts the night before he passed. "My life has been so full of adventure and wonderment and for the past 30 years all of you have been a great source of joy as you shared your love for our music, my passion for animals, and my desire to share the love of God with all of you. I'm forever grateful for the unending loyalty so many have shown through the years and support of whatever talents the Lord gave me on this earth.

"I leave behind so many wonderful friends, my wonderful family, the greatest family anyone could ask for, my brothers, Doug & Jim, my sister Sue, and my wife Cristy, my forever soul mate, my best friend and the most beautiful person I've ever known." 

Tourniquet was founded by Ted Kirkpatrick, Guy Ritter, and Gary Lenaire in 1990. The band primarily performs a mixture of thrash, progressive, and neoclassical metal, and is influenced by additional, non-rock forms of music such as classical and world music. The band is named for the tourniquet, "a surgical device for arresting hemorrhage by compression of a blood vessel."  

They have earned six GMA Dove Award nominations and won multiple recognitions from the readers of HM Magazine, including "Favorite Band of the 1990s" and "Favorite Album of the 1990s" for Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance (1992). It has released ten studio albums, two live albums, four compilation albums, one EP, and several video releases. Tourniquet has sold more than 300,000 albums. 

In addition to its use of classical music, the band is known for frequently using medical terminology in its album and song titles and lyrics. 

If you would like to help with Ted's expensive medical bills, a Go Fund me account has been set up.
https://gofund.me/b64becd2 

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