Tourniquet
Crawl to China
Reviewed by Mike Parker
With the sudden global acceptance of Stryper in the late '80s, Christian music experienced an explosion of new metal acts, like Sacred Warrior, Shout and Whitecross, playing every variety of metal from thrash, speed, skate, and melodic to you-name-the-qualifier. At the top of the metal heap was a band called Tourniquet. Known for their genuine artistic talent and politically-charged lyrics, Tourniquet developed a dedicated following. Tourniquet's latest, Crawl To China, finds the former grunge-metal trio exploring a variety of musical genres, from classic thrash to acoustic folk, with a little arena rock thrown in for good measure. Yes, there is the obligatory rough-as-gravel vocal screams, the thundering guitar leads and trademark double-kick wall of drums. And there are the literate, unvarnished lyrics, delivered with passion and art. And the production is slick. You don't even have to read the lyric sheet to understand the words! OK, so maybe that's a negative for die-hard metal fans. But I like it. Tourniquet seems to be a band that has come to grips with who they are, and they like themselves. Best cuts include the Alice Cooper-esque "Enveloped in Python," the surprising acoustic "If I Were There," and the enigmatically titled "Claustrospelunker."