Stryper the American Christian metal band from Orange County, California has been around since about 1983, disbanded in 1993 and came back stronger than ever in 2003. Not many bands have lasted the journey as they have, at the level they have. Also Michael Sweet is still after 37 years one of the best vocalist the metal scene, Christian or otherwise has ever had. He still has the chops to deliver with precision, and has not become some beer belly has been wash up trying to kindle a flame that just does not want to ignite.
Well Stryper’s latest offering, “Even The Devil Believes” off Frontier records comes forth like a flaming sword, and one’s got to believe the devil is paying attention to these guys as they have come back stronger than ever in 2020. Some would call them, “God’s favourite Heavy metal band”. With the longevity of their career that sentiment might just be true. They have managed to stay off the naysayers and build a reliable fan base, and have certainly made their mark in the heavy metal scene as a whole.
Stryper come at it as strong as they ever have on “Even The Devil Believes”, and the album hits hard, loud and fast, three elements crucial to a great rock n roll album. The melodies are bigger than ever, Michaels’ vocals a weapon of metal music’s finest, and the instantly recognizable twin guitar solos still ignite goose bumps for fans as their metal footprint continues to expand. The album gets a lot of its strength through the clean production quality, and placement of the individual tracks. It all comes together quite cohesively as a package, covering any monotony there is in the album. I like the more heavier tone of the album as well, and I feel that aids their sound in given it that modern edge.
Nothing like roaring out the gates at supersonic kick ass speed, and Stryper achieves this as t
Stryper the American Christian metal band from Orange County, California has been around since about 1983, disbanded in 1993 and came back stronger than ever in 2003. Not many bands have lasted the journey as they have, at the level they have. Also Michael Sweet is still after 37 years one of the best vocalist the metal scene, Christian or otherwise has ever had. He still has the chops to deliver with precision, and has not become some beer belly has been wash up trying to kindle a flame that just does not want to ignite.
Well Stryper’s latest offering, “Even The Devil Believes” off Frontier records comes forth like a flaming sword, and one’s got to believe the devil is paying attention to these guys as they have come back stronger than ever in 2020. Some would call them, “God’s favourite Heavy metal band”. With the longevity of their career that sentiment might just be true. They have managed to stay off the naysayers and build a reliable fan base, and have certainly made their mark in the heavy metal scene as a whole.
Stryper come at it as strong as they ever have on “Even The Devil Believes”, and the album hits hard, loud and fast, three elements crucial to a great rock n roll album. The melodies are bigger than ever, Michaels’ vocals a weapon of metal music’s finest, and the instantly recognizable twin guitar solos still ignite goose bumps for fans as their metal footprint continues to expand. The album gets a lot of its strength through the clean production quality, and placement of the individual tracks. It all comes together quite cohesively as a package, covering any monotony there is in the album. I like the more heavier tone of the album as well, and I feel that aids their sound in given it that modern edge.
Nothing like roaring out the gates at supersonic kick ass speed, and Stryper achieves this as they step on the gas and put the album in gear with their first track, “Blood from Above”, a song that in all honesty plays homage to all things that make Stryper one of the best heavy metal bands out there. Songs like “Make Love Great Again” is a very commercially driven song, but that said it embodies a lot of what made that late 80’s heavy rock so great, from the steady drum work to the great solos. There is no mistake that in general the songs are well written and executed, and it helps cover up some of the albums weaker artistic moments, like the almost cheesy, “This I pray”.
Wow, “This I Pray”, could be a Bon Jovi song that they covered. If someone told me that this was a Bon Jovi song from “Blaze of Glory” days of Bon Jovi, I probably would believe it, if I did not know any better. It’s not a bad song, think it holds more strength in the lyrics than the actual music personally, but then I am ballad out. Think bands Like Extreme and Cinderella killed ballads for me.
“Divider” my favourite track on the album sets a light with a truly epic intro, like Judas Priest style. Love Rob Halford to do a cover of this song. Man this song is on fire, one of the most epic lead guitar solos I have heard in a long time too. This song alone makes up for song like, “This I pray”.
There is no doubt that these are seasoned veterans of rock, and definitely in the area of harmonies these guys are one of the best in the industry. So if you like harmonies that are well executed then this album is a must have add to your collection. One track that stands out in this regard is “Invitation Only” a hall mark moment in the album for sure. It’s the best of Stryper past, mixed with the best of Stryper now, and evades falling into the land of cheesy.
They end the album strongly with”Middle Finger Messiah” finishing the album at the same pace of delivery as the start of the album.
In short Michael Sweet still has the vocal reach, which most aging rock stars have lost. The quality of the album can be put against anything of the best Stryper has done in the past, and certainly is one of the best releases in the new period of Stryper. They have managed to tap into a lot of their 80’s sound with a modern touch to it. This is a Stryper infused fan fest of a release. “Even The Devil Believes” even with some of its cheesy
Christianese lyrical moments is a well executed and written album. I think Stryper need to be applauded for sticking to their guns here, and its great to see that after all these years they still got it, and able to deliver in mountain loads with conviction and edge.
Rating: 8.5/10
Written by Donovan de Necker
Current Band Members:
Michael Sweet – lead vocals, guitar, piano
Robert Sweet – drums, percussion
Oz Fox – guitar, backing vocals
Perry Richardson – bass guitar, backing vocals
Albums:
“The Yellow and Black Attack” [1984]
“Soldiers Under Command” [1985]
“To Hell with the Devil” [1986]
“In God We Trust” [1988]
“Against the Law” [1990]
“Can’t Stop the Rock” [Compilation – 1991]
“7 Seven the Best of Stryper” [Compilation – 2003]
“7 Weeks : Live in America 2003” [Live – 2004]
“Reborn” [2005]
“Extended Versions” [Live – 2006]
“Greatest Hits – Live in Puerto Rico” [Live – 2007]
“The Roxx Regime Demos” [Compilation – 2007]”
“Murder by Pride” [2009]
“The Covering” [2011]
“Second Coming” [Compilation – 2013] (review)
“No More Hell to Pay” [2013] (review)
“Fallen” [2015] (review)
“God Damn Evil” [2018] (review)
Release Date: Sept. 4th. 2020
Record Label: Frontiers Records
Weblinks: Website / Facebook / Twitter
Lyric Video For ‘Blood From Above’
Video for ‘Divider’
Video for ‘Do Unto Others’
Lyric video for ‘Make Love Great Again ‘
