Word began circulating last week that Stryper have officially parted ways with original bassist Tim Gaines, which had been rumoured for some time. The band issued an official statement confirming the split:

"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 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 Brandee'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!"

Stryper frontman Michael Sweet has followed up the statement with a message to the fans:

"We will be making a statement about a new bassist fairly soon. Stay tuned. We're getting a ridiculous amount of inquires from many players. We're also seeing the 'But is he a Christian?' comment a lot. Funny thing is, often enough non-Christians act more like Christians in many ways. My point? Being a Christian is very important but not always the number one priority. We just want a great player/singer and someone who is a team player and respectful of our band and history with a good heart and attitude. We won't compromise who we are and we'll make the right decision. Don't worry."