THE TEAR GARDEN

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Release date and tracklist

October 24, 2025
US MP3/CD AOF463CD Artoffact Records

1. A Return
2. Going Up
3. Lady Fate
4. Square Root
5. It Just Ain’t So
6. In The Name Of
7. Exorcism
8. Toten Tanz
9. War Crier
10. Swallow The Leader
11. Unreal
12. A Developing World
13. Always Take the Highway
14. Chow Mein
15. Undiluted Bliss

US 2xLP on purple vinyl
US CD Digipak

Side A

1. A Return
2. Going Up
3. Lady Fate
4. Square Root

Side B

1. It Just Ain’t So
2. In The Name Of
3. Exorcism
4. Toten Tanz

Sice C

1. War Crier
2. Swallow The Leader
3. Unreal
4. A Developing World

Side D

1. Always Take the Highway
2. Chow Mein
3. Undiluted Bliss

Credits

• Edward Ka-Spel
• cEvin Key

guests:

• Dwayne Goettel
• Randall Frazier
• Dre Robinson

Mixed and mastered by Gred Reely
Artwork by Simon Paul

Notes

from The Tear Garden’s bandcamp page:
The Tear Garden, the legendary experimental project of Edward Ka-Spel (The Legendary Pink Dots) and cEvin Key (Skinny Puppy), is set to release their highly anticipated new album, Astral Elevator. This record marks a significant return for the duo, delivering a soundscape that is both familiar and refreshingly new. As with their past work, the album is a journey through surreal, often haunting electronic textures and Ka-Spel’s distinct, poetic lyricism and mysticism.

Produced entirely by The Tear Garden themselves, Astral Elevator is a testament to the enduring creative partnership between Ka-Spel and Key. The album also features contributions from a stellar lineup of guests, including the late Dwayne Goettel, who provides a poignant and powerful presence. The sound is further enriched by the talents of Randall Frazier and Dre Robinson, and the entire experience was brought to its final form by the expert hands of Greg Reely on mixing and mastering.

In addition to the album’s release, fans can look forward to a full visual experience. The stunning artwork for Astral Elevator was created by Simon Paul, perfectly capturing the album’s ethereal and otherworldly themes. Furthermore, videos directed by Cory Gorski will accompany the singles due out during the album cycle.

Astral Elevator marks not only a return for The Tear Garden, but also their first record for Toronto-based Artoffact Records, home to many of cEvin Key’s other projects.

TEAR GARDEN

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Release date and tracklist

July 17, 2012
NL MP3 self-released on Bandcamp

• Center Bullet Live in Strasbourg 1​.​5​.​1988

Credits

• Edward Ka-Spel
• cEvin Key
• ?- guitars

Notes

A rough rough recording but as a document it’s priceless. Tear Garden appeared on stage twice in 1988, basically playing “Center Bullet” as an encore for EK’s solo set.This is an audience recording, given to EK some years ago on CDR by the taper (thank you!!).  If anyone has a better quality recording it would be most welcome.

THE TEAR GARDEN

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Release date and tracklist

September 3, 2020
NL MP3 self-released on LPD’s Bandcamp

1. Strange Land
2. Made In China Part 2
3. Amy’s Personality
4. Calling Time
5. Figures In The Mist
6. Castaway
7. Sinister Science
8. The Double Spades Effect
9. The Tragic Carpet (edited)
10. Lola’s Rock
11. Seven Veils
12. Have A Nice Trip

Notes

“Crystal Mass” kicked off the 21st Century for Tear Garden and was the last to feature such an extended lineup on all songs.

The biggest reason for this change was the reformation of Skinny Puppy, as well as The Pink Dots’ dependence on touring to survive. It meant recordings for “The Secret Experiment” (2007) were conducted by the mailing of cdrs from cEvin in Los Angeles to myself in The Netherlands and vice versa. Even so, there’s a pleasing sense of unity which binds the album together, making it much more than the sum of its parts.

I did manage to spend a week in LA for the follow up, “Have a Nice Trip”, and this spawned the epic “Made In China Part 2”, surely one of the finest songs in the history of the project.

Even so, I vouch that TG’s finest hour arrived in 2017, with “The Brown Acid Caveat”, where cEvin and I enjoyed rich contributions from Dre Robinson, Patrick Q. Wright, Ryan Moore, Martyn De Kleer and Ray Steeg. It’s one Hell of a ride and much of it can be heard in this third and final part of the Tear Garden Anthology. EK

Tracks 1,3,4,7,10,11 from “The Brown Acid Caveat”; tracks 2,5 & 12 from “Have A Nice Trip”; tracks 6 & 8 from “Crystal Mass”; track 9 from “The Secret Experiment “.

THE TEAR GARDEN

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Release date and tracklist

September 3, 2020
NL MP3 self-released on LPD’s Bandcamp

1. Sheila Liked The Rodeo
2. Judgement Hour
3. Ascension Day
4. In Search Of My Rose
5. The Running Man
6. Empathy With The Devil
7. White Coats & Haloes
8. Circles In The Sand
9. Isis Veiled
10. Romulus & Venus
11. A Ship Named “Despair”
12. Malice Through The Looking Glass

Notes

The 90s was a spectacular decade for Tear Garden as the lineup expanded, incorporating all of the Pink Dots.

“The Last Man To Fly” was recorded in 1991 at Mushroom Studios in Vancouver following LPD’s second U.S Tour and there was a beautiful anarchy infusing the month-long recordings. The mood was epitomised by “Isis Veiled” – a song composed in 10 heady minutes in the chill out room by Dave ‘Rave’ Ogilvie and your humble narrator, and then recorded in 2 takes with everyone playing unfamiliar instruments. Improvisations could last for an hour, often with 6 or 7 people taking part. For one part we asked a friend (Jo) to bring us some children’s toys to record – she brought us a sack of them!

Ultimately we couldn’t decide on a track order, so we opted for chronology with the first finished song beginning the adventure and the last closing it. Sadly the label hated this psychedelic extravaganza and did their best to smother it at birth – happily they failed!
Fast forward 4 years to the creation of “To Be An Angel Blind, The Cripple Soul Divide” ( not a typo, the label changed the title without letting us know) in an altogether sadder atmosphere.

The whole band was reeling following the tragic loss of Dwayne, who was a key member of Tear Garden and Skinny Puppy. A deep sense of melancholy hangs over the album, yet it’s arguably as strong as it’s wild predecessor. This collection presents a delicate balance of both outings. EK

Tracks 2,3,4 & 12 from “To Be An Angel Blind,The Cripple Soul Divide”; Tracks 5 to 11 from “The Last Man To Fly”; Track 1 from “Sheila Liked The Rodeo”.

THE TEAR GARDEN

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Release date and tracklist

September 3, 2020
NL MP3 self-released on LPD’s Bandcamp

1. Deja Vu
2. Ophelia
3. Coma
4. Splatterflick
5. Perforated Man
6. The Center Bullet
7. All The Stars Are Falling
8. You & Me & Rainbows
9. OO-EE-OO

Notes

1986. I’m on a plane high over the arctic wastes of Greenland en route to Vancouver, Canada. I’ve been invited to play a three show residency at a small club named “Channel One” and I’m nervous…..

I’d built up a mental picture of North America from a stream of ‘horror’ news reports, which had left me a little afraid to step out of a car upon arrival. In short, it felt like I was flying into a dangerous landscape of gangs, guns and glittering blades.. no place for a naive boy from Dagenham.

It was in this mindset that I wrote the lyrics to “Center Bullet”. In the years leading up to this adventure, I’d built up a long distance friendship with cEvin Key of Skinny Puppy and he asked me to write lyrics and add vocals to a long instrumental piece of theirs. Don’t ask me for an explanation of those words…they are pure train of thought, but you could say there’s a lot of blood.

CEvin manned the mixing desk for my shows, and the recording of “Center Bullet” went so well, we decided to keep a good thing going. It’s 2020, and Tear Garden just turned 34!
As for my American fears, Vancouver was a city where the cars stopped for a pedestrian to cross the street and it seemed like everyone smiled all the time.
I’m sceptical when it comes to news broadcasts in there more informed times.

This collection focusses on the 80s recordings, including a few songs from “Eye Spy with My Little Eye”, an album where many of cEvin’s instrumental pieces from that decade were finished by us both 20 years later.

Tracks 1,3,8,9 & 10 from “Tired Eyes Slowly Burning”; tracks 2 & 6 from “The Center Bullet EP”; Tracks 4,5 & 7 from “Eye Spy With My Little Eye”

THE TEAR GARDEN

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Release date and tracklist

July 7, 2017
US MP3/CD/2xLP Subconscious Records SUB 47, Metropolis Records MET1084

July 10, 2017
US MP3/CD/2xLP self-released on The Tear Garden’s Bandcamp page

1. GEORGIE P */**/ GOOD EVENING HOUSTON
2. GOOD EVENING HOUSTON PART 2
3. MESSAGE III */**
4. FORBIDDEN ZONE
5. NOTHING’S SET IN STONE
6. GREENER GRASS
7. DEMONS (THE 3AM MIX) */**
8. THE THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT */**
9. IT’S YOUR KARMA **
10. TEARS
11. EMPATHY

Credits

• cEvin Key
• Edward Ka-Spel
• Ryan Moore (*)
• The Silverman(*)
• Martijn de Kleer (*)
• Frank Verschuuren (* /**)

Recordings made in Los Angles, Vancouver , London and Nijmegen. ·
Mastered By Brad Vance at Red Mastering. Artwork by Edward Ka-Spel and cEvin Key.
Layout by Simon Paul.

Notes

From Metropolis’ Bandcamp page– The Tear Garden is a psychedelic/experimental/electronic band, formed by Edward Ka-Spel of The Legendary Pink Dots & cEvin Key of Skinny Puppy. The duo has collaborated on 6 albums, 2 EPs, & the first volume of “Eye Spy With My Little Eye”. Like the first volume, “Eye Spy Vol. 2″ is a collection of unreleased tracks, demos & rewritten or original material made over the life of The Tear Garden.

“FORBIDDEN ZONE”, GREENER GRASS” ,”TEARS” originate from lost TG pieces dating back to 1987 which were recently finished.

“GOOD EVENING HOUSTON” is a re-interpretation of a rare bonus track which originally appeared on the Russia only compilation ,”For Those Who Walk With The Gods” (1999) Part 3 is taken from this collection and has been remastered. Other songs are remastered, having been collected from various compilations.”DEMONS” is an alternative/home-made version of a song from “Crystal Mass”.

“NOTHING’S SET IN STONE” is an alternative version of a song from “Have A Nice Trip” (2009).

From LPD’s bandcamp page– History resolved.Parts of this bumper anthology have been heard before on hard-to-find compilations. More songs were unearthed from old tapes gathering dust for 30 years, but finished in the last 12 months.And there are pieces that were never heard before. A trip, with a cover to match.

Lyrics

TEARS

BEEN TOLD THE ONLY CERTAINTIES OF LIFE ARE DEATH AND TAXES, A SWORD ABOVE OUR HEADS AND THE ACCELERATING YEARS.
PERPETUAL QUESTIONS. WHERE’S THE SENSE IN SLOWLY SWINGING AXES. WERE WE BORN TO DROWN IN ENDLESS OCEANS OF OUR TEARS.

THERE’S ALWAYS TEARS ,FORGET HOW GOOD IT GETS
TEARS….. FLOODING THE KITCHEN
TEARS I ITS RAINS , IT POURS .WE’RE WET
TEARS THATS OUR CONDITION /
TEARS TEARS TEARS

AND ITS NOTHING THAT YOU DID ,RELAX .YOU ARE NOT BEING PUNISHED.
THERES METHOD IN THE MADNESS.JUST BE GLAD THAT YOURE ALIVE.
CONSIDER THIS A TEST – THOSE WHO SUMMON UP SOME COURAGE will .SURVIVE…..

THERES ALWAYS TEARS…