Veteran Christian rockers Stryper [ tickets ] have a new album in the pipeline, and plan to back the forthcoming set with a massive US tour that will also mark the group's 25th anniversary.

Though dates and venues have not yet been confirmed, the group plans to launch the run in September, and is expected to hit about 50 cities throughout the US, according to a press release. An international run will follow in early 2010.

During the upcoming roadtrip, Stryper will play two sets. The first will comprise new Stryper material, and feature original members Matthew Sweet, Robert Sweet and Oz Fox along with bassist Tracie Ferrie.

The second will feature all four original band members, including original bassist Tim Gaines, "wearing the original yellow and black stage outfits and performing that band's hits from the last 25 years," according to a press release.

"After recently learning about how precious life is and how often we take for granted the time that we have here on earth, I realized that this tour may very well be the most important tour in the history of Stryper," frontman Michael Sweet said in a prepared statement; Sweet's wife, Kyle, died last month after a two-year battle with cancer.

"Tim, Robert, Tracy, Oz and myself are all stepping out together to show the importance of unity and forgiveness and the only way to show this is to live it," he added. "We've been faced with challenges over the past 25 years, but two things have remained certain within our hearts and within our lives: the power of God's love and the beauty of God's grace."

In July, Stryper plans to issue a new album titled "Murder by Pride." Select cuts from the set will begin to surface at Apple's iTunes Music Store and other online retailers next month, according to Stryper's website.

Michael Sweet Jr.'s band Flight Patterns will hold down the tour's opening slot. The group plans to issue its debut album in July.