Michael Harrison Sweet is a singer and guitarist from Whittier, California; he is the co-founder, songwriter, guitarist and lead singer of the Christian metal band Stryper. He's also had a successful solo career, and briefly served as singer and guitarist for Boston from 2007 to 2011.
Robert Lee Sweet is the drummer of the Christian metal band Stryper. He and his brother Michael founded the band as Roxx or Roxx Regime. Robert became known as the "Visual Time Keeper" for his wild drumming and captivating drum kits. Unlike most drummers, Sweet faces in the direction of stage left or right while playing, not straight ahead, so that the audience can see him and not have their view of him obscured by his drumkit. He began using a sideways setup in 1978 as a way to enhance his showmanship and connect with the audience. Sweet also played a key role in the visual direction of the band itself as well as being a significant contributor to the group.
To Hell with the Devil is the third studio album by the Christian metal band Stryper, released in 1986. It was the first Christian metal album to achieve platinum status, selling over one million copies. It remained the best-selling Christian metal album until P.O.D.'s Satellite in 2001.
The Yellow and Black Attack is the first release and debut studio album from the Christian metal band Stryper. It was originally released as a six-song EP, and fewer than 20,000 copies were pressed, as their label, Enigma Records, was unsure of the potential market for Christian metal. CCM Magazine was slightly critical, citing production quality and the short length of the release, but commented that "Stryper has the promise of a major success story." According to Michael Sweet's autobiography, the album was re-recorded and released as an official album, after their first manager, Daryn Hinton, loaned them $100,000 to re-produce the record. The album initially sold 150,000 units in the first three weeks.
Richard Alfonso Martinez, better known by the stage name Oz Fox, is the lead guitarist of the Christian glam metal band Stryper. Martinez' high school friends called him Oz in honor of Ozzy Osbourne due to his ability to emulate the vocals of Osbourne while playing Black Sabbath covers in his pre-Stryper days. He was recruited by the Sweet brothers in 1983 to form what would become Stryper. As a founding member of the band, Fox recorded and toured with Stryper until the band's first break up in 1992 but has since rejoined the band.
Tim Gaines is an American bass guitarist best-known as the long-time bassist for the Christian metal band Stryper until his departure in 2017.
Reborn is the ninth release, and sixth album, from the Christian metal band Stryper, and the first full-length album of new material since Against the Law in 1990. Reborn was slated to be a Michael Sweet solo record, but after their reunion tour, Sweet played it for the other members, at which time Oz Fox suggested it should be a Stryper record. So the other members came in and learned their parts from the original demos. Sweet says in his autobiography, Honestly: My Life and Stryper Revealed, that he convinced Big3 Records, which had signed him for a solo release, to make it a Stryper record deal. Thus, Reborn became the first all-original Stryper record in 15 years.
In God We Trust is the fourth studio album by Christian metal band Stryper, released in 1988. The album achieved Gold record status, selling over half a million copies. Three singles were released including "Always There For You" and "I Believe in You" which both hit the Billboard Hot 100 chart peaking at No. 71 and No. 88 respectively - the second song, however, became a hit in Brazil, as part of soundtrack of the novela O Salvador da Pátria. The third single "Keep The Fire Burning" did not chart. The album received two GMA Dove Awards for "Hard Music Album" and "Hard Rock Song" for the title track.
7: The Best of Stryper is the seventh release and second compilation album by Christian metal band Stryper. Released in 2003, it is the second compilation album produced by the band, and its recording and release led to the reunion of the original members of the band.
7 Weeks: Live in America, 2003 is the eighth release and first live album by Christian metal band Stryper. Released on May 18, 2004, it was recorded during the band's reunion tour in 2003. A live DVD, titled Stryper: Live in Puerto Rico was recorded during the band's sold-out show in San Juan, Puerto Rico and was supposed to be released alongside the live album. The DVD was finally released on September, 2006.
Can't Stop the Rock is the sixth release, and first compilation album, from the Christian metal band Stryper, released in 1991.
Sweet Family Music: A Tribute to Stryper is a various artists album, released in 1996, as a tribute to the crossover Christian metal band Stryper.
Released by Christian rock singer and Stryper frontman, Michael Sweet, in 2000, Truth is the official full-length Restless Records version of the demo album of the same name Sweet independently released two years earlier (1998).
Murder by Pride is the twelfth release and sixth full-length studio album by Stryper. It was released on July 21, 2009 by Big 3 Records. The first single for the album, "Peace of Mind", debuted at No. 27 on Christianrock.net on October 24, 2008 and peaked at 1 on February 22, 2009. The track is a cover version, originally performed by rock band Boston on its debut 1976 self-titled album. Michael Sweet was a touring member of Boston for several years, before parting ways amicably in 2011.
Stryper is an American Christian metal band from Orange County, California. The group's lineup consists of Michael Sweet, Oz Fox (guitar), Perry Richardson, and Robert Sweet (drums).
The Covering is the thirteenth release and eighth studio album by American Christian heavy metal/hard rock band Stryper, released by Big 3 Records/Sony on February 15, 2011. The album is a collection of twelve cover songs from bands that inspired Stryper and helped to shape the band's sound and musical identity. The album also includes "God", a new original recording.
Ultimatum is an American thrash metal band from Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Second Coming is the fourteenth release and ninth studio album by American Christian heavy metal/hard rock band Stryper. The album features re-recorded versions of earlier material as well as two new songs.
No More Hell to Pay is the fifteenth release and tenth studio album from Christian glam metal band Stryper, produced by band frontman Michael Sweet and released on November 5, 2013 by Frontiers Records. The album garnered positive critical reception from music critics as well as commercial success.
Fallen is the sixteenth release and the eleventh studio album by the Christian metal band Stryper, produced by the frontman Michael Sweet and released on October 16, 2015.
