Christian Metal Band Stryper Gear Up For Tour, New Album

Christian metal band Stryper has announced plans for a 25th Anniversary Tour, hitting 50 cities in North America this fall. Though dates and venues have not yet been confirmed but the band plans to go international in January and February 2010.

The Orange county, CA rockers will promote their upcoming studio album "Murder by Pride" that will be released in July. The tour, which launches in September, will be a two-set show with the first set consisting of new material with the band's current bassist Tracy Ferrie.

The second set will feature older favorites with the band's original line-up -- Michael Sweet, Robert Sweet, Oz Fox and original bassist Tim Gaines.

"After recently learning about how precious life is and how often we take for granted the time that we have here on earth, I realized that this tour may very well be the most important tour in the history of Stryper," frontman Michael Sweet said in a prepared statement.

Sweet's wife, Kyle, died last month after a two-year battle with cancer. The contemporary Christian band will be donning their original yellow and black stage outfits and performing the band's hits from the last 25 years. Dates and markets will be announced at www.stryper.com and www.michaelsweet.com.

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