The band is the greatest Christian Heavy Metal band of all times. Everything from their name, their style of music and the videos reflect the Christian faith. They have invoked major controversy several times from the religious clerics for preaching the Christian faith thorough heavy metal music. In terms of the sound they resemble the melodic metal romp of Van Halen and Def Leppard. The band has toured all over the world and has a massive following in the US.

Stryper - Christian Rock Through The Ages

"I'm kind of burnt on the whole yellow thing, I understand its part of our identity, but now gives us a nice pair of black jeans and a nice black shirt and we're ready to rock." - Michael Sweet

In Stryper We Trust

The band is the greatest Christian Heavy Metal band of all times. Everything from their name, their style of music and the videos reflect the Christian faith. They have invoked major controversy several times from the religious clerics for preaching the Christian faith thorough heavy metal music. In terms of the sound they resemble the melodic metal romp of Van Halen and Def Leppard. The band has toured all over the world and has a massive following in the US.

They have sold nearly 10 million worldwide and even though there has been a fall in their following in the 90s, they have managed to sell-out shows in the US with consummate ease. They have released 8 studio albums and 9 singles which have sold well throughout the US. Currently the band is on their 25^th Anniversary Tour and will be releasing a new album by the end of 2010.

The Early Years

The formation of the band is credited to the brothers Michael and Robert Sweet who started playing in 1975. While playing in various bands which they started together, they have admitted to drift away from Christianity and it was only an awakening which brought them back. Influenced by the guitar rock sounds of Van Halen, the group wanted to express their views about the world through music. Initially, calling them selves Roxx Regime the band comprised of Michael playing guitar plus lead vocals, Robert playing the drums and Oz Fox playing lead guitar.

In 1984 they released their first EP titled "The Yellow and Black Attack" which created enough buzz for them tour as opening acts for Ratt and Bon Jovi. It was however their first full length album "Soldier Under Command" in 1985 which was there commercial breakthrough. The bands music was taking shape and they embarked on a year long tour of the US.

Major Success

After relentless touring they released "To Hell with the Devil" in 1986 which went platinum. The theme was pure Christian metal with a glam metal sensibility. The song "Free" from the album was the first Christian metal song to reach No. 1 on MTV. The album is still the most successful album in the Christian metal genre - even till this day. It even had a Grammy nomination and the band went on a world tour and even opened the Dynamo Open Air Festival in Netherlands.

In 1987 they quickly headed into the studio and started recording an album which they had written while being on tour. The album "In God We Trust" was released in 1988 and was certified Gold. The music was more pop oriented and aimed at the youth generation. The band received critical praise for the album and the title track is one of their signature tunes played in almost every live show.

The band even won two awards at the annual Christian Music Awards in Nashville, dubbed the Dove Awards.

The Decline

By 1990, the band wanted to experiment and try new ideas especially towards their image and songwriting. They released the highly controversial album "Against the Law". As a start the album cover did not have black and yellow color which was present in all the albums previously released. The band now were wearing black leather and trying to be cool rock stars.

There was also no mention of religion or God in the entire album and the band was savagely criticized for their new direction. In 1991 they signed to Hollywood Records and released a Greatest Hits package. Michael Sweet had now departed wanting to pursue a solo career.

Only in 1999 during a concert in Puerto Rico that Michael Sweet joined his brother and the rest of the band was an encore. They also started the Stryper Expo in 2000. They have released several albums but not quite capturing the old commercial or critical relevance.

Sadly in 2009, Michael Sweet's wife died of cancer. After a brief period of silence Sweet announced that he would tour again with Stryper and even record a new album stated for release in 2010.

The band has created an enormous legacy especially in the US for their brand of Christian music and they still remain one of the most commercially successful recording artist of this genre,

• Michael Sweet the lead singer for Stryper has also fronted the band Boston and toured with them in 2008
• It is alleged that Stryper has not returned the advance of $56,000 to a promoter for a cancelled show in Mexico City
• The name "Stryper" derives from the King James Version of Isaiah 53:5:

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