Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Soldiers Under Command - by Stryper

The one; the only.
Stryper was formed in Orange County, CA.  Originally called Roxx Regime, vocalist Michael Sweet, brother & drummer Robert Sweet, & guitarist Oz Fox started the band in 1982.  However, after releasing a demo in that same year, they recruited bassist Tim Gaines, signed to Enigma Records, & changed their name to Stryper, which stands for 'Salvation Through Redemption Yielding Peace, Encouragement, & Righteousness"; & they directly connected their name with Isaiah 53:5*.  Their debut release "The Yellow and Black Attack" came in 1984, & they followed that with "Soldiers Under Command" [Enigma] in 1985 - it remained on Billboard's Top 200 for over half a year, & was the first ever Christian metal album to go Gold.  They released 3 more albums (plus a re-release of "The Yellow...") before their break-up in 1992.
They went their separate ways & released various material as or with different acts, but in 2000, they reunited for "an informal jam at the first annual Stryper expo in New Jersey"*.  Hollywood Records released "7: The Best of Stryper" (which contained 2 new songs) in 2003, & later that year, Stryper went on a 35 city tour & they were officially reunited.  Since then, they've released 3 full length albums (the latest being a cover album aptly titled "The Covering"[Big3; 2011]).  This song is from "Soldiers Under Command".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iPZ0cNtqIQ

* - Isaiah 53:5 - But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; & with His stripes we are healed. (KJV)
** - http://www.stryper.com/Band/thestryperstory.htm

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