Look, if you weren’t around in the ‘80s, it’s hard to understand just how weird Stryper was with their yellow and black wasp suits, twin guitar harmonies, and Bibles launched like grenades from the stage. But underneath all the neon salvation and televangelist bombast was a band that could shred with the best of ‘em, preach while melting your face, and—get this—convert sinners through solos.

Stryper wasn’t just a Christian metal band. They were metal that happened to believe in something. And when they hit, they hit harder than a thunderbolt from Mount Sinai.

So let’s light a candle, plug in that Marshall, and count down the top 3 Stryper albums that you must blast before the rapture.

3. Fallen (2015)

They weren’t supposed to come back this strong. But they did. Fallen is the sound of resurrection, of a band that’s seen the abyss and come out swinging with riffs carved from judgment day itself. The title track “Fallen” opens like a blacksmith hammering on the gates of hell and is heavier than anything they released in the ’80s, but still laced with those golden harmonies.

“Yahweh” is a seven-minute biblical metal epic co-written by Clint Lowery of Sevendust—think early Metallica with a choir of angels shredding behind them. “Big Screen Lies” punches through the fog of modern deception, and “Let There Be Light” is a straight-up Revelation rock opera. This album isn’t a comeback—it’s a conquest.

2. Soldiers Under Command (1985)

This is where Stryper declared war on Satan, on cynicism, on the idea that metal had to be nihilistic. The title track explodes out of the speakers like a divine battle cry: “We are the soldiers / Under God’s command!”—an anthem with the fists-in-the-air power of Priest and the flash of Crüe.

“Together Forever” is an arena-sized love song to salvation, and “First Love” is a ballad that feels more altar call than prom dance. Then there’s the pure, high-octane gospel metal, “The Rock That Makes Me Roll” with a solo that sounds like it was pulled straight out of a burning bush. The conviction in Sweet’s vocals is so sincere it’s disarming, but they weren’t playing a role, they were living the mission.

This is where Stryper declared war on Satan, on cynicism, on the idea that metal had to be nihilistic. The title track explodes out of the speakers like a divine battle cry: “We are the soldiers / Under God’s command!”—an anthem with the fists-in-the-air power of Priest and the flash of Crüe.

“Together Forever” is an arena-sized love song to salvation, and “First Love” is a ballad that feels more altar call than prom dance. Then there’s the pure, high-octane gospel metal, “The Rock That Makes Me Roll” with a solo that sounds like it was pulled straight out of a burning bush. The conviction in Sweet’s vocals is so sincere it’s disarming, but they weren’t playing a role, they were living the mission.

1. To Hell With The Devil (1986)

This is it—the album where Stryper went full messianic glam gods and somehow took Christian metal to MTV. The title track is a straight-up blast of brimstone boogie, a line in the sand drawn in fire and eyeliner. “Calling on You” and “Free” are twin towers of melodic metal that are filled with impossibly catchy, gospel-tinged, and laced with guitar solos that flash like lightning bolts.

And then there’s “Honestly”—a ballad so earnest it could make demons weep. Michael Sweet’s voice hits cathedral ceilings, while Oz Fox’s leads turn every song into a holy shred-fest. Even the deep cuts, like “The Way” and “Holding On,” are fist-pumping declarations of faith that rock harder than half their secular peers. This was the album that made people stop laughing—and start listening.

Stryper didn’t just play Christian metal. They improved it, wrapped it in leather, and screamed it into arenas full of skeptics and sinners. They were laughed at, spat on, and still they played on—defiant, loud, and absolutely unashamed. These three albums are proof that faith and fury can coexist, that a righteous riff can save souls, and that yes, the Devil may have better tunes but Stryper’s are louder.

If you’ve never heard them, crank these three records. If you think Christian metal can’t be cool, listen again but louder this time. Heaven never sounded so dangerous. Amen.