Live Review: Stryper’s 40th Anniversary Tour Makes a Stop in Denver

Monday’s show at the Oriental Theater was a full circle moment for me. My dad had taken me to see Stryper years ago, way before things like social media existed. Back when you found out about shows by way of posters and newspapers. He was a pastor and I was a fully fledged teenaged metalhead. Stryper was a scarce piece of common ground.

Fast forward an unnamed number of decades later and I’m seeing the band again – this time with a camera in hand. It’s their 40th Anniversary tour and even if the outfits are toned down the the hair isn’t reaching as high into the heavens as it used to, they sounded almost exactly as I remembered them.

The evening was split into two parts. The first was a “classic” set featuring the likes of “Soldiers Under Command,” “To Hell With the Devil” and “Calling on You.” After which frontman Michael Sweet announced they would take a 30 minute intermission and return with newer songs, including some from their latest studio album, When We Were Kings. It was a solid second half. Which I might have enjoyed even more than the first.

Stryper have stayed the course on a righteous path. A path of making great music and holding tight to their convictions. My dad has been gone for years now, but the memory of that first show still lingers. It was a momentary bridge, like music often can be, between an expanse that can develop between two people.

Before closing out the night, the band thanked the crowd and promised to return. I hope they do. I know I’ll be there. Check out our photos from the evening below: