STRYPER To Record New Album In October

Veteran rockers STRYPER will enter the studio in October to begin recording the follow to their 2015 album "Fallen" for a tentative March/April 2018 release.

During an interview with David "Gus" Griesinger of Backstage Axxess at last month's NAMM show in Anaheim, California, guitarist/vocalist Michael Sweet spoke about how he balances recording and performing with STRYPER with his other activities, which include a solo career and a side project with ex-DOKKEN guitarist George Lynch. He said: "I've been diagnosed with a couple of different conditions, and I joke about that. And then some people say, 'Hey, dude, that's not funny. You shouldn't joke about that.' And it's, like, well, you've gotta laugh about it, or you're screwed, basically."

He continued: "I do have ADHD, and I am OCD and all that stuff, and I think a combination of those two really help to drive me and focus on what I need to get done. Unfortunately, the downside to it is that's all I'm thinking about — music. I'm so hyper-focused on music that I tend to neglect my family and friends sometimes. But that's what drives me. That's why I'm able to put out two or three albums a year."

Sweet added: "It's interesting to me. I'm not meaning to mock anybody that does this, but these bands that say, 'Oh, yeah, man, we've got twenty songs, and we've been working on it for four years,' and I'm just thinking, 'Wow! That's just sad. That is sad! I don't know. I don't get it. And, again, it's not disrespect. What I mean by that, 'sad,' is four years of your life… I don't know, man. To me, you should know instantly… Like when I start to write a song, if I don't like it, I throw it away, and then I get another idea, and then I start on that, if I feel it's good. I don't waste time demoing stuff that I know is just mediocre. I'm able to determine that right upfront, out of the box."

STRYPER guitarist Oz Fox recently revealed that Tim Gaines was going through a divorce, forcing the band to take a hiatus and possibly consider a future without the bassist. "As far as I know, [Tim is] looking like he's on his way to making all of that stuff in his life correct and fixed, and then we'll see where he stands after he's all done with that, and I know he wants to keep touring," Fox told The Vinyl Mishappenings.

Michael told the WSOU radio station that STRYPER has "no plans of stopping," despite the latest setback. He explained: "I mean, we had considered it and thought, well, maybe we should, but then we realized, well, that's just fair to us, that's not fair to the fans. So we're gonna continue on for sure."

Sweet also said that it was "probable" that STRYPER would carry on without Gaines, explaining that "if we were to disband or dissolve or stop, it really wouldn't be fair to the fans, it wouldn't be fair to the other guys, and it's important to keep that in mind as well."

"Fallen" entered The Billboard 200 chart at position No. 43 with first-week sales of just over 10,000 units — nearly all from pure album sales. The set followed the No. 35-peaking "No More Hell To Pay", which was released in 2013.