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As previously reported, Stryper bassist Tim Gaines announced that he is no longer a member of the band.
Gaines said that “all hell broke loose” after he “ended up getting a divorce, which is taboo as far as Christianity, I guess.” He added, “…I’m not the only guy in Stryper to have gotten a divorce. Everybody in the band is married to divorced people. And I’m the bad guy, but everybody else has done it too, so? Whatever…”
Remaining Stryper members Michael Sweet (guitar, vocals), Oz Fox (guitar) and Robert Sweet (drums) released the following statement, in response to Gaines’ claims:
“Dear fans and friends,
We wish Timothy Gaines nothing but the best, and we will always remember the history and the good times that we all shared together.
We have done our best to remain courteous and professional despite the barrage of disrespectful comments, posts and tweets that have been made public time and time again by Tim and [his new wife] Brandee on what seems to be a daily basis.
The accusations that have been made that our decision to terminate Tim is based on his divorce couldn’t be further from the truth. We have all struggled with separation and divorce in our relationships over the years, and it has never affected anyone’s position within the band.
The band decided to take a hiatus in order to give Tim time and space to work through his personal issues. However, based on Tim and Bradee’s intentional, erratic and hostile behavior, which has damaged Stryper and threatened to undermine the band’s ability to go forward professionally, we were left with no other choice but to part ways. Tim and Brandee have left their scars and have hurt us in more ways than you can imagine.
We were also forced to retain legal representation based on a public post/threat that Tim made about suing the band in 2016.
Tim is our brother, and we love him, but this has become a toxic relationship at this point and due to that, we cannot continue on with our mission and stay true to who we are and what we represent with Tim in the band.
We’re excited about the future and we will be making an official announcement very soon about our new album, tour and bassist.
We love our fans and we appreciate your support and patience as we work through these changes. The best is yet to come!”
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Earlier today, Gaines took to his Facebook page to once again address his departure from STRYPER. He wrote: "My recent demise within the STRYPER camp came about because I actually have testicles. I stood my ground when I was told to give up the woman I love (who is now my wife) or get fired. I threatened to sue. I was 'conveniently' fired ten days after my marriage to Brandee, on the grounds that I made some posts threatening to sue the band for wrongful termination. They called it 'threats.'
"My recommendation to Oz and Bob [STRYPER drummer Robert Sweet]? Grow some balls and stand up to that pathetic one and his conniving wife" — apparently referring to STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet — "or just continue to live a life of mediocrity. You both have been threatened with termination over the last several years. He has a million-dollar home. You rent and drive twenty-year-old broken-down cars. You both have NOTHING to show for your thirty-five years. Quit playing rock star and get a clue, dumbshitz."
STRYPER is scheduled to enter the studio in November to begin work on in its new album for an early 2018 release.
The band has not yet announced a replacement for Gaines.
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STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet spoke to ListenIowa about the band's latest addition, former FIREHOUSE bassist Perry Richardson. Perry joined the band as the replacement for STRYPER's longtime bassist Tim Gaines, who was fired from the group earlier this year.
Regarding how STRYPER hooked up with Richardson, Michael said: "Our co-manager mentioned [Perry]. We were talking with Sean McNabb [LYNCH MOB] and I had a brief conversation with Chris Wyse, who plays with Ace Frehley and THE CULT. I love James LoMenzo [MEGADETH, WHITE LION, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY], who could have been a great fit, too. But there's so much to think about, so when Perry's name got thrown out there, it was one of those, 'I never thought of that' things. I reached out him, and scheduled a flight. We jammed, and it felt right. No one was uncomfortable. We haven't known him long, but from what we have heard from the people who have known him all their lives is that he's a great person. He came in, learned five of our songs, and locked right into the pocket with Rob [Sweet], who is one of those drummers who adds a lot and is a little more difficult to follow. Perry nailed it. We sang harmonies, and it sounded like the album."
According to Sweet, STRYPER "originally made the decision over the phone" to hire McNabb. "He's a wonderful guy," Michael explained. "Talented. But he's got the LYNCH MOB gig, and they're going to be very busy next year. We just fell like that, after talking to George [Lynch] and Oni [Logan], we just didn't want to go there. We're really trying hard to run away from any kind of drama. Any time we feel any form of drama is coming our way, it's, 'Boom! We're out,' believe it or not."
Michael also talked about the progress of the writing and recording sessions for STRYPER's follow-up to 2015's "Fallen" album. He said: "It's all done. I came home from a recent four-show acoustic run in California, took a day off on Monday, and then Tuesday I set up all my gear. I had my computer, my speakers, my little iPad with my guitar rig in it, and I started writing. Within a week, I had everything. I've been tweaking since — a chord here or a lyric there — but everything was done within a week. Oz [Fox, guitar] sent me some ideas, two of which ended up being used for the album. It's like a puzzle and fitting the pieces together and getting things to flow. We have a title and a title track. It's shocking, moreso than with 'To Hell With The Devil'. When people hear it, they're going to go, 'What? Can you tell me that again?' A lot of the lyrics on the album have been kind of therapeutic, coming from the last two or three years."
Sweet went on to clarify that both the title of the album and the lyrics of the title track will be "shocking" to STRYPER fans. As for the music, he described it as "straight-up STRYPER and a little AC/DC and a little [JUDAS] PRIEST in a blender… It's an anthem with a straight-ahead, memorable, sing-along chorus, and people will be like, 'Yes!'"
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