Heavy Metal Hill

By Leslie Snyder

A message of peace and love that began in La Mirada, California in the early 1980’s is still going strong over four decades later with a Christian metal band named Stryper.  This ear-piercing metal band shattered the “glass ceiling” within the heavy metal genre by not singing about sex and mayhem, but rather their message was about hope, peace, and love.  Now, this fearless Christian metal band is still trying to spread a message of hope and gratitude into a chaotic world with the release of their twelfth album “When We Were Kings” which will be released on September13, 2024 featuring eleven tracks that will hopefully awaken wretched souls everywhere.

The awakening of wretched souls begins with ominous skies hovering over Planet Earth in the eerie track “End Of Days.”  This track features howling vocals and brooding metal melodies that sound like a violent thunderstorm is occurring with oceans rising at an alarming rate.  Therefore, leaving frightened citizens clinging to any object they could hold onto that was not completely submerged by an angry ocean.  This track is a haunting tale about how the world is spinning out of control due to power andgreed rather than finding a constructive way to find peace and happiness.  So, God is doing what he said he would do if his people did not behave accordingly. God is unleashing a storm in which humanity has never seen.  The moral to this wake-up call is thathumanity better start acting civilized, or the light of Planet Earth will go out.  Meanwhile, the awakening of wretched souls is continuing with a cool, brisk wind blowing and the sun poking through the clouds in the heart wrenching track “When We Were Kings.”  This track features screaming vocals and sizzling metal melodies that sound like a man whose feet are being burned while walking over hot coals after being punished for stealing a person’s muscle car simply because they wanted it.  This track is an angry tale about a once troubled man’s disgust over the way that society views those who are of lesser intelligence.  People of previous generations learned to cooperate with one another rather than steal someone else’s property, or beat one another into submission because neither party could agree on how to adequately solve problems that were interfering with the daily functions of a thriving society due to ideological differences.

Finally, the awakening of wretched souls comes to a glorious end in the passionate track “Grateful.”  This track features shouting vocals and heavy, pulsating metal melodies that sound like hearts are popping out of a proud group of men’s chests as they are standing on a stage looking at a large crowd of adoring rock and roll fans.  This track is a heartfelt tale about a rock band who is thankful for the support of their fans.  Otherwise, these proud men would not be able to do what they love for a living.

Stryper is a veteran Christian metal band who walked through fire when they “shocked” the heavy metal music scene with their “clean.” Yet blistering brand of heavy metal music that promoted kindness rather than debauchery.  Stryper clearly shows no signs of slowing down with the release of their forthcoming album “When We Were Kings.” 

 

Record Label:  www.frontiers.it

Band Website:  www.stryper.com