Stryper are back in the news with some big events coming up and recent releases in their original lineup ! That's right ! Tim Gaines is back in the fold and they have planned a big 2011 tour. On the 15th of February they released a new album of secular covers and an all-new original tune titled God. Their new company is Big3 Records and as I mentioned previously in 2010 they are now on I-tunes so you will be able to download their music here shortly.
According to Michael Sweet, the impetus for putting out a covers set was a simple one. "Every Stryper album is pretty serious and pretty bold in the lyrical faith sense of the word. We just wanted to roll our sleeves up, cut loose, and have some fun." When it came time to pick out a listing of tunes to cover, all the band had to do was look back upon their club days. Growing up, before Stryper was even Stryper, we were a cover band. We played Gazzarri's on the (Sunset) Strip for years - we would do originals but also do covers, as well. We always did Priest covers and Maiden covers, all those bands that we grew up on and influenced us."
What fans can expect will run the gamut from the 70s era classic rock of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Scorpions, Iron Maiden and even Kiss!
What fans can expect will run the gamut from the 70s era classic rock of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Scorpions, Iron Maiden and even Kiss!
"A few things we set out to do on this album was to stay true to the original - we didn't want to disrespect the original versions," explains Michael. "I'm never going to sound like Bruce Dickinson or Ronnie James Dio, nor would I ever try to... and having me sing the song puts our own spin on it. We just all did our own thing and with our own touches and feel - Robert, Tim, Oz, and myself - it has that Stryper feel to it as well."
Big3 Records Chairman Bill Edwards adds, "We are excited to allow Stryper the creative freedom to do what they do best, and take this album to the next level. We are very excited about working with the band and helping make 'The Covering' a widespread success."
To get the word out about the new album Stryper have just started a tour which will comprise four of their own anthems plus four covers from the new album. According to Michael Sweet, "... then we've got a whole slew of other Stryper songs that we've been playing for a long time. So we probably have 20 songs in the set."
Big3 Records Chairman Bill Edwards adds, "We are excited to allow Stryper the creative freedom to do what they do best, and take this album to the next level. We are very excited about working with the band and helping make 'The Covering' a widespread success."
To get the word out about the new album Stryper have just started a tour which will comprise four of their own anthems plus four covers from the new album. According to Michael Sweet, "... then we've got a whole slew of other Stryper songs that we've been playing for a long time. So we probably have 20 songs in the set."
Click HERE for the latest confirmed tour dates!
Always with the latest...
The Castle Lady
