Luke Easter is an American singer and songwriter. Before becoming a solo artist, he was the lead singer of the

Christian metal Christian metal, also known as white metal, Jesus metal or heavenly metal, is heavy metal music distinguished by its Christian themed song lyrics and the dedication of the band members to Christianity. Christian metal is typically performed by ...

band

Tourniquet A tourniquet is a device that is used to apply pressure to a limb or extremity in order to stop the flow of blood. It may be used in emergencies, in surgery, or in post-operative rehabilitation. A simple tourniquet can be made from a stick and ...

History

Easter had been a part of a band called Heaven's Gate, prior to the

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...

's formation. Easter joined Tourniquet during their 1992 ''

Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance ''Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance'' is the third studio album by the American Christian metal band Tourniquet. It was originally released on Intense Records in 1992 to the Christian market and later released on Metal Blade Records in 1993 to the secu ...

'' tour, replacing former vocalist

Guy Ritter Guy Ritter (born 1966) is an American musician who primarily performed thrash metal and speed metal. Ritter is best known for his vocals in the Christian metal band, Tourniquet. History Ritter started his musical career with the band Holy Danger ...

. According to Easter, Bryan Gray (

The Blamed ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

, Rocks in Pink Cement) was the reason for his induction, directing him to bassist Victor Macias. With his addition, the band changed musical direction with the first album to feature Easter, ''

Vanishing Lessons ''Vanishing Lessons'' is the fourth studio album by the American Christian metal band Tourniquet. It was originally released on Intense Records in 1994. It was the first Tourniquet album to feature then-lead vocalist Luke Easter, who joined the ...

''. With Easter on Vocals, the band shifted, with the lineup consisting of Easter, drummer

Ted Kirkpatrick Ted Kirkpatrick (May 22, 1960 – August 19, 2022) was an American musician and songwriter, best known for his work with the American Christian thrash metal band Tourniquet. Primarily a drummer, Kirkpatrick was the principal songwriter for the ...

, guitarist Aaron Guerra, bassist Victor Macias, and guitarist

Gary Lenaire Gary Lenaire (born July 29, 1967) is an American musician who primarily performs thrash metal and speed metal. Lenaire is best known for his work in Tourniquet, though later he began to work for BOSS amps and interviewed musicians, including Steve ...

. In 1997, the band released '' Crawl to China'', however, this was without Macias and Lenaire, as the two quit the band due to differences with Kirkpatrick. Lenaire and Easter's relationship was also rough by the time of Lenaire's departure. Easter recorded with the band on their 2012 release, ''

Antiseptic Bloodbath ''Antiseptic Bloodbath'' is the eighth full studio album released on July 19, 2012 by Tourniquet (band), Tourniquet, a Christian metal band formed in 1989 in Los Angeles, California. It is the band's first release since 2003's ''Where Moth and Rust ...

'', marking Tourniquet's 7th album and Easter' fifth. He would also contribute on their 2014 release, ''

Onward to Freedom ''Onward to Freedom'' is a solo album by Tourniquet drummer Ted Kirkpatrick. Originally announced as a side project to be released as The Tourniquet Ark, Kirkpatrick made the decision to release it under the Tourniquet name with himself listed ...

'', which was under the name of The Tourniquet Ark. He continued as the lead singer of the band until 2015. In December 2015, the band announced that Easter had left the band due to shifts in musical direction. Kirkpatrick stated that Easter's departure had to do with his musical path not aligning with the band's. In 2018, Easter released a crowdfunded EP, ''The Pop Disaster''. In a change of direction from the

progressive metal Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad :Fusion music genres, fusion music genre melding heavy metal music, heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified electric guitar, guitar-driven s ...

of Tourniquet, the new EP featured pop-influenced rock. The EP featured performances by

Tim Gaines Tim Gaines (born Timothy Hagelganz; December 15, 1962) is an American bass guitarist best-known as the long-time bassist for the Christian metal band Stryper until his departure in 2017. Biography Early life Gaines was born in Portland, Ore ...

(ex-

Stryper Stryper is an American Christian metal band from Orange County, California. The group's lineup consists of Michael Sweet (lead vocals, guitar), Oz Fox (guitar), Perry Richardson (bass guitar), and Robert Sweet (drums). Formed in 1983 as Roxx ...

), David Bach (

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unite ...

) on bass, Josiah Prince (

Disciple A disciple is a follower and student of a mentor, teacher, or other figure. It can refer to: Religion * Disciple (Christianity), a student of Jesus Christ * Twelve Apostles of Jesus, sometimes called the Twelve Disciples * Seventy disciples in t ...

) on lead guitars,

Jesse Sprinkle Poor Old Lu was a pioneering Christian alternative rock band based in the American Northwest. The band experimented with a variety of sounds and genres, particularly grunge, funk and psychedelic rock. The band consisted of Scott Hunter (vocals), ...

(ex-

Poor Old Lu Poor Old Lu was a pioneering Christian alternative rock band based in the American Northwest. The band experimented with a variety of sounds and genres, particularly grunge, funk and psychedelic rock. The band consisted of Scott Hunter (vocals), ...

, ex-

Demon Hunter Demon Hunter is an American Christian metal band from Seattle, Washington, started in 2000 by brothers Don Clark and Ryan Clark. Although the brothers created the band together, only Ryan remains, since Don left the band to take care of his ...

) on drums, and Kris Kanoho on guitars. In 2020, it was announced by Gary Lenaire that Easter, Guy Ritter, and original Tourniquet guitarist Erik Mendez would perform on Lenaire's newest solo album, alongside

David Husvik David Husvik is a Norwegian drummer who has played in metal bands Extol, Absurd², Twisted Into Form and InSection and Aperture, a jazz and acoustic rock project. David Husvik helped to start Pirates N 'Thieves in 2007. He also performed in a sid ...

(

Extol Extol are a Christian metal band from Bekkestua, Norway that was formed in 1993. The band is known for playing a variety of different styles of metal which include progressive metal, death metal, black metal and thrash metal. Over the course ...

Azusa Azusa may refer to: Relating to California From a Native American language, likely Tongva ''Asuksagna:'' *Azusa, California, a city in the United States *Azusa Pacific University, a Christian-based institution in Azusa, California *Azusa Street Rev ...

) on drums. Lenaire, Easter, Ritter, Mendez, and Husvik are also hoping to reach out to former bassist Victor Macias (ex-Tourniquet, ex-

Deliverance ''Deliverance'' is a 1972 American survival thriller film produced and directed by John Boorman, and starring Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, and Ronny Cox, with the latter two making their feature film debuts. The screenplay was adapted ...

, 2050) to perform on the release as well.

Discography

Solo *'' The Pop Disaster (EP)'' (2018) Tourniquet * ''

'' (1994) * '' Carry the Wounded (EP)'' (1995) * '' The Collected Works of Tourniquet'' (1996) * '' Crawl to China'' (1997) * '' Acoustic Archives'' (1998) * ''

Microscopic View of a Telescopic Realm ''Microscopic View of a Telescopic Realm'' is the sixth studio album by the American Christian metal band Tourniquet. It was released on Metal Blade Records in 2000. The title track includes Steve Rowe of the Australian Christian metal band Mort ...

'' (2000) * ''

Where Moth and Rust Destroy ''Where Moth and Rust Destroy'' is the seventh studio album by the American Christian metal band Tourniquet. It was released on Metal Blade Records in 2003. The album's title is a reference to Matthew 6:19. Most of the guitar solos on this album ...

'' (2003) * ''Live in California - 1998'' (2010) * ''

'' (2012) * ''

'' (2014; as The Tourniquet Ark)

Videography

* ''Pushin' Broom Video'' (1995) - VHS * ''Tourniquet Live in California'' (1998) - VHS * ''Ocular Digital'' (2003) - DVD * ''Till Sverige Med Kärlek (To Sweden With Love)'' (2006) - DVD

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Easter, Luke American male singers American heavy metal singers American performers of Christian music Christian metal musicians Living people Year of birth missing (living people)