MICHAEL SWEET Explains Decision To Collaborate With GEORGE LYNCH On SWEET & LYNCH

SWEET & LYNCH — the new band featuring guitarist/vocalist Michael Sweet of Christian hard rockers STRYPER, legendary guitarist George Lynch (T&N, DOKKEN, LYNCH MOB),bassist James Lomenzo (MEGADETH, WHITE LION, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY) and drummer Brian Tichy (S.U.N., WHITESNAKE) — will release its debut album, "Only To Rise", on January 27, 2015 via Frontiers Music srl. The CD was produced by Sweet, who also helmed the last STRYPER album, "No More Hell To Pay".

In a new post on his Facebook page, Sweet writes: "Why did I decide to do SWEET & LYNCH?

"I was approached by Serafino at Frontiers Records to sing and write for what he was referring to as a 'supergroup' project (one of the first) that Frontiers would be putting together and releasing. I was, of course, not only intrigued by the idea but also humbled that he would ask me! Jon Levin (DOKKEN) was suggested as the possible guitarist and I suggested to Serafino getting the man himself, Mr. Scary (George Lynch) involved. Serafino was, of course, excited about the idea. Frontiers has told me how happy they are with my production on the new STRYPER albums so I immediately suggested producing as well. Serafino also agreed. I contacted George [as soon as possible] and he quickly agreed to be a part of this exciting project. It was decided that he and I would co-write everything together and that I would produce.

"I knew George from a few STRYPER/LYNCH MOB shows and we seemed to hit it off in terms of personalities.

"Many of you know that George considers himself to be a freethinker/atheist and I'm, of course, a devout Christian.

"You may ask how does an atheist and a Christian work together in a band situation? The answer is respect. Although I don't agree with George's spiritual/religious views (and he doesn't agree with mine, assumedly),we respect each other as musicians, friends and human beings.

"I'm free to do many things with the hope that maybe, just maybe, my life might have a profound effect on people I come in contact with.

"I've spoken with George many times over and he always strikes me as a genuine soul and someone who cares for and loves people. Bottom line? He's a great guy and I'm proud to be a part of this with George.

"Although we don't see eye to eye in our beliefs, we respect each other enough to not let that come between us.

"I believe that the uniqueness of each other helped created a very unique piece of art.

"'Only To Rise' could not have turned out any better, in my humble opinion, and George is equally as thrilled as I am. Now add to this Brian Tichy (drums) and James Lomenzo (bass),and together the four of us have painted a masterpiece (in my opinion) and we cannot wait for all of you to hear it in its entirety.

"A little more history: George wrote 60-90-second ideas (intro, verse, chorus) guitar oriented riffs/songs and then I arranged and wrote lyrics and melodies and mapped everything out. I then flew Brian and James out and we tracked the basic tracks (drums, bass, guitars) and then we tracked the background vocals (Robbie LaBlanc and Charles Foley).

"A funny side note: some people have said that the vocals sound like STRYPER. I'm not even singing within the background vocal stack, just the lead vocal over the vocal spread/stack.

"Also, some people have said that some of the songs sound like STRYPER. Well, either George Lynch is the biggest STRYPER fan on the planet or oddly enough, the guitar/song idea he came up with just so happen to have a little STRYPER flare. I think it's very different than STRYPER and the only common ground is the sound of my voice, which is instantly recognizable."

"Only To Rise" track listing:

01. The Wish
02. Dying Rose
03. Love Stays
04. Time Will Tell
05. Rescue Me
06. Me Without You
07. Recover
08. Divine
09. September
10. Strength In Numbers
11. Hero-Zero
12. Only To Rise

EPK (Electronic Press Kit):

"September" lyric video: