After the very good release of “Reborn” in 2005, Stryper return to the music scene with a new cd that can only be characterized as one of a kind. They tried to avoid the usual successful paths that they followed in the past and they dared to move one step further and change their style a bit, but in a way that won’t be “strange” to old and new fans. In my personal opinion, “Murder By Pride” can be characterized as one of the best releases of 2009 till now.

The sound and instrumentation are in top level, after all this is something that was always an asset for Stryper, while their performing is accurate. The taste of the tracks varies from one to another, mid tempo, ballads and fast tempo compositions according to their classic style. Michael Sweet seems to be in great shape while he achieves all the high notes as he always did. A pleasant surprise is the cover of Boston’s the classic song “Peace of Mind”, as a tribute to this great band and in which the guitar parts were recorded by Tom Scholz (at this point I must say that Michael Sweet has been singing with them since 2008 as a touring member). We also hear the classic Stryper sound on the guitars by Oz Fox, who does not need to play any complicated solos in order to convince for his capabilities, the man is better than ever, and last but not least a tight rhythm section which consists the basis of the band.

The production is very good and it suits to the overall style of the release. More analytically, the cd is consisted by 12 tracks for every taste and this is something that was confirmed by some statements coming from Michael Sweet, saying that the  tracks were written due to the wishes and advices of friends and fans. With the exception of the aforementioned version of “Peace of Mind”, my favorite moments of the cd are “Alive”, an excellent ballad with a unique performance, “Run In You” and the self titled track of the release “Murder by Pride”, which is the trademark of the overall style, without underestimating at all the remaining tracks.

Finally, Stryper ground their presence in the music industry with “Murder by Pride” and we mean nothing else but to support them, as this is a release that all their friends, old and new, must hear. “In Stryper we trust”.