STRYPER’S HARD ROCK IS SOFT SELL

In a couple of highly publicized recent court cases, heavy metal performers Ozzy Osbourne and Judas Priest have vigorously denied any responsibility in the deaths of young fans who committed suicide allegedly after listening to their records.

But the members of Stryper, the “heavenly metal” band whose new “To Hell With the Devil” album has leaped into the national Top 40, are only too pleased to take credit for the power their music has over some who hear it.

“We got a letter from this guy in St. Louis who said he was going to kill himself,” said drummer Robert Sweet in a recent interview at the Orange County foursome’s new residential headquarters in Buena Park.

“He said he had the gun in his mouth and that he had turned on a radio to drown out the sound of the gunshot when one of our songs came on and made him change his mind.

“When you hear something like that, it makes you feel that you’re doing something right,” Sweet said, shortly before embarking on a new tour that brings the band to the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium on Saturday.

The group’s born-again Christian stance and its melodic, Boston-like hard rock sound do appear to be finding favor with a larger segment of the pop audience. In the nine weeks since it was released, “To Hell With the Devil” is nearing gold record status (500,000 copies) and has become the biggest-selling album yet for El Segundo-based Enigma Records, a label spokesman said.

Such out-of-the-box success indicates that Stryper is nearing the kind of mainstream acceptance the band members have hoped for since they first appeared on Southern California stages in 1983 hurling Bibles, rather than expletives, at heavy-metal fans.

“I’m sure there are a lot of people who probably don’t even listen to the words, or (the message) doesn’t mean anything to them, but they are there just because they like the music,” said Sweet, who is joined in Stryper by his younger brother Michael, the band’s lead singer, bassist Timothy Gaines and lead guitarist Oz Fox.

“It really has to be that way, because if people don’t like the music or are not entertained by your show, they are not really going to listen too much to what you have to say,” Sweet said.

Because the group’s 1985 debut LP, “Soldiers Under Command,” surpassed the 400,000 sales mark, Stryper was given more time, money--and pressure--to record “To Hell With the Devil,” whose cover features a fantasy rendering of four long-haired male angels dispatching Satan into a fiery abyss.

“Everybody was really expecting something good after ‘Soldiers,’ ” Sweet said. “This one was easier in a sense because we had more money to do it. But it was harder in one sense because we worked with a co-producer (Stephan Galfas) who was always sending us back to do it again, to do whatever we could to make it perfect.”

“A long time ago when we were starting out, seeing these big bands and everything that they got, thinking, ‘It must be nice to be like that,’ I didn’t realize the responsibilities and the pressures that came with it.”

The Christian viewpoint that pervades Stryper’s music can also be found in the musicians’ work ethic. So while they admit that life on the road isn’t always cloud nine, even for devout Christians, the band members have their mission to lean on when times are tough.

“A lot of people think it’s just fun all the time--that it’s just all money and popularity and big houses,” Sweet said. “That’s not necessarily true. There are times when you feel like you’re ready to pull your hair out. But even though it can get real hard sometimes, it’s great to know that it is being done for a real reason. You look at the music of a lot of bands, and they say, ‘We don’t mean anything; don’t take us too seriously.’ We like to think our music does mean something.”

On the other hand, Sweet is aware that some rock fans, booking agents, club owners and radio programmers may be put off by blatantly religious lyrics, so they have included several songs on the new album that are open to either religious or non-religious interpretations.

“I don’t think you have to mention the name of Jesus Christ 10 times in every song. But the underlying meaning should always point to Christ in one way or another,” he said.

Last week, the first video from the album, “Calling On You,” made its MTV debut, which Sweet hopes will lead the way for even more radio and TV exposure for the group--something that hasn’t come easily so far.

Said Sweet, “I don’t understand why stations will play ‘Highway to Hell’ by AC/DC, but then feel weird about playing ‘To Hell With the Devil.’ ”

One of the obstacles Stryper has worked hardest to overcome is the notion in the secular pop world that Christian bands are less interesting musically than non-Christian groups.

“I hate to say it, but with some Christian bands, the quality is inferior--not their lyrics, but the music,” Sweet said. “So I feel it’s always very important for Stryper to sound and look and play as well as we can. Because people really listen when they enjoy your music and your stage show.”

Ironically, Sweet said that one of the biggest compliments the band has received came from a record store employee who was a self-proclaimed atheist.

“He said he liked us so much that he had some stickers printed up to put on the album telling people, ‘Just because they are Christians, don’t be deceived by the record--it’s good.’ For that to happen, we must be having some kind of an impact.”

LIVE ACTION: Joe Cannon returns to the Crazy Horse Steak House in Santa Ana on Monday (Jan. 5) . . . Lone Justice will play the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano on Jan. 9-10. The Coach House has added a second Blood, Sweat & Tears show for Jan. 30. . . . Blue Trapeze will play Night Moves in Huntington Beach on Jan. 11.