Darn you, Chevelle. I had the perfect title picked out for my review of your third album - "Wonder What's the Point". And then you had to go and ruin it by making an album that was actually above average.

Now don't get me wrong, folks - I've never hated Chevelle. I've been satisfied with my purchases of the hard rock trio's previous albums - Point #1 and Wonder What's Next. I think I paid a grand total of about $11 for both of them put together, so I can't really complain about them being hit-and-miss. There was definitely a shift in sound from their lesser-known days as a presumably "Christian" band on Squint Records to when they graduated to the bigtime on their second disc for mainstream label Epic. Suddenly the riffs were meatier, the production was less muddy, and the screaming was more in-your-face, and yet there was a subtly catchy melodic backbone lurking beneath the surface. I wasn't sure which incarnation of Chevelle I liked better, since that second disc retreated into pummeling monotony about halfway through and the first disc also had a dry spell taking up a good chunk of its center. But I figured it would be interesting to see what they came up with after becoming huge, and being embroiled in controversy courtesy of Christian music fans who turned a suspicious eye on them as soon as they changed labels.

Here's the thing about Chevelle. Their lyrics are cryptic and often minimal. They've explained a few of their songs (generally the singles), but for the most part, their songs don't seem to contain a singular, overt meaning. Lead singer Pete Loeffler seems to enjoy writing in fragmented free-verse (or at least as free as one can get when trying to rhyme and return to a chorus over the duration of a song), and that leaves a lot of blanks to fill in. It's kind of like an un-funny version of a Mad Lib or something, or maybe a less cluttered and pop-culture informed version of the kind of stuff that R.E.M. writes. Whatever the case, it's kind of hard to examine their lyrics and say definitively that Chevelle is a "religious" band of any sort. Far as I can tell, they've kept that stuff private, alluding to a desire to cling to God in a few songs, but not feeling the need to throw too many specific clues out to their audiences. Chevelle's music as a whole seems to be more concerned with human relationships, specifically those that are in conflict. Call me crazy, but as angry as they can sound at times, I actually like that about them. The fact that they don't seem to dwell too much on romantic relationships also sets them apart, I think. God only knows who's managed to tick these guys off (sometimes I think they're just mad at each other), but occasionally they get something really thoughtful out of the deal, something that doesn't sound like everything else on modern rock radio.

The group's third disc, This Type of Thinking Could Do Us In, may seem at first to be more of the same from Chevelle. Despite some new equipment and a lower tuning on Pete's guitar, the musical style is more or less the same as it was on Wonder What's Next. What's nice to hear, though, is a little more concentration in the songwriting department, resulting in more songs and fewer fragmented ideas that stretch out for twice as long as they would if the lyrics were repeated half as many times. In that sense, the album takes the lyrical strength of Point #1 and matches it with the musical muscle of Wonder What's Next, creating songs that are, for the most part, individually intriguing. The focus is less on powerful riffs this time - though those still exist - and more on actual content, and I think that was a wise move.

Now I'm no hard rock expert - and to these ears, This Type of Thinking isn't even that "hard" when compared to some of the more grueling numbers from Chevelle's last album. I figure that whenever there's a melody, you probably lose a bit of cred with the hard rock purists. To that I say, whatever. The musical tone needs to fit the song, and Chevelle has always had an ear for texture like their obvious heroes, Tool. They haven't quite escaped being mistaken for Tool on a few of these songs, to tell you the truth, but then they're not going to churn out any 11-minute epics any time soon, either. Chevelle's approach is more workmanlike, and I'm OK with that as long as there's enough variety involved. This album passes that test, varying the tempos and time signatures just enough and even taking a second shot at the "closing acoustic ballad" thing that has become a bit of a formula for "sensitive" hard rock bands these days, and actually getting it right for a change.

Yep, I think this is gonna be the first Chevelle album that I'm compelled to listen to more than just once in a blue moon.

The Clincher
This body's left the soul
The brain needs oxygen
Can't sneak around this bait
His catacomb has got me by the chin...
A guitar squeal and churning rhythm gets things going immediately - this song has a feel similar to the last album's "Comfortable Liar", and it's kind of odd as an opener, since it doesn't have a brooding or haunting lead-in like you might expect. The band delivers the goods in relatively straightforward fashion here, allowing the guitar to wiggle and scratch around in between the lyrics, and building from a richly melodic chorus into heavier territory with Pete screaming, "Now saturate the earth!" at the song's climax. As far as lyrics go, Chevelle has chosen to lead off with one of their finest head-scratchers, making numerous references to a person who has been buried, and seeming to indicate a feeling of guilt for that death. It's tempting to view this as an unsolicited response to The Passion of the Christ (and as such, it's ten times better than the vast majority of the official list of songs inspired by that film), but then, interpreting Chevelle lyrics can be a bit like a Rorschach test - the listener tends to hear what they want to hear. So I'll stop short of making any definite claims on the meaning here, other than to say that it's a fascinating song worth getting lost in.

Get Some
Eyes on the goal
Last one to get
Is passed over, looked over...
One thing I've always liked about Chevelle is their tendency to spend a fair amount of time in rhythms other than 4/4. 6/8 seems to be their favorite alternative to the norm, and this generally allows a song to feel like a more fluid, easygoing tune at first, and then develop into something more choppy and aggressive later on. This works well for a song that sounds a lot like a dig at the entertainment industry, perhaps even at the negativity and shock tactics that drive so many of Chevelle's peers to stardom. (Again, interpretation is rough going here, so these are just the vague feelings that I get.) Pete's vocal approach is wonderfully gritty here, growling the words "A blackout touching new life" with a sufficient amount of venom during the chorus. Midway through the song, the band takes an unexpected left turn and shifts into a jittery 4/4 section that ends up being the crux of the song - "That's entertainment, get some." Basically, he seems to be saying that we enjoy watching other people fall and get hurt. The song wraps itself up nicely by switching back into its original time for a last run through the chorus, leading up to the next song with an intensity reminiscent of how "Closure" led into "The Red" so nicely on Wonder What's Next.

Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)
It's typical, come write a world
A special place of my designs
To never cope or never care, just use the key...
The album's first single actually sounds a lot like "The Red" at first - Chevelle can be somewhat predictable with their riffs and rhythms at times. If "The Red" was a well-timed observation regarding anger management, then "Vitamin R", as its title would suggest, is a slightly more dangerous song about the abuse of the prescription drug Ritalin. Apparently the boys have been close to someone who did this, and it inspired a twisted bit of poetry that makes it difficult to tell exactly who is accusing whom of doing what. The lyrics, which deal with slavery and screaming fans and stuff like that, seem like another commentary on celebrity, but maybe they're dealing with peer pressure instead. Either way, it's a vocal showcase for Pete as he manages to shift between singing and screaming very quickly, which makes for a nice effect during the bridge, where the words come out as follows - "OVER! and OVER! a slave". Yeah, that's going to be a fun one to sing/shout along with in the car in rush hour traffic.

Still Running
The lie, want to know, has it met
Expectations so far
Now run, make amends, feeling torn
Boy, you better be sure...
This track contains the most unexpectedly amusing moment of the album, which fools me into thinking it's a live track at first when Pete starts off with a rapidly shouted "disclaimer" that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, and then his brothers kick in and the actual song begins. This is probably the heaviest track on the album so far, featuring more of the jittery riffing that worked so well in the bridge of "Get Some" - it's nice to hear Pete not settling for standard, precisely timed power chordage. His brothers Sam and Joe are no slouch on the bass and drums, creating a slamming rhythm for Pete to work himself into another frenzy over. The lyrics here are a bit more minimal, much like one of the lesser songs on Wonder What's Next, leaning mostly on repetition to get their point across. His tone is very threatening here - "Say it, say it! Get it done!" seems to be the primary refrain, and it's shouted, not sung. He sounds like an angry older brother trying to get the younger and weaker siblings to say "uncle" as he twists their arms. Not sure what the point is, but it's fun.

Breach Birth
Passing out schematics
Forcing all into molds...
Joe and Sam really shine on this track, which rolls along nicely on its 6/8 rhythm, featuring a standout bass line and metallic drum-work that would put a similarly paced 12 Stones song to shame. Chevelle seems to pick up energy as they go with these sorts of songs, where other so-called "nu-metal" bands often seem to lose it. This song is another one of the more baffling entries on the album, never mentioning its title but instead railing against "molds" that we're seemingly being forced into. The odd choice of words is probably what allows songs like this to escape the accusations of being standard nu-metal fare - even if the subject matter is typical, you'd never know it. It's one of those songs like "Blank Earth" that I'm not sure I'll ever unravel.

Panic Prone
There's close enough and there's too far
It won't change an empty stare
But I can't seem to end these images
Hauntingly looks like hell...
One of the slower entries on the record shows up here, opening up with brooding but relatively gentle strokes on the guitar and bass and gradually working its way into grittier territory. Kind of funny that a song called "Panic Prone" would pose itself as more of a calm ballad, and even funnier that a comparatively mellow song would call someone "the b@st@rd" in its opening line - once again, the choice of words is more attention-grabbing on this disc than it used to be. The subject of their name-calling here seems to be a person who is a sellout, who is afraid to stand up to the people who are using him, and who ends up feeling very empty and betrayed in the end. This song pulls off a sharp transition into the next as it bleeds into a bit of guitar feedback and suddenly cuts off.

Another Know It All
Tricking us in, don't get along if they're brothers
So phasing it out, correcting vision with fists...
If "The Clincher" is one of those songs that some fans are likely to grab hold of and point to as proof that underneath Chevelle's lyrical riddles lies a Christian message, then this one ought to really confuse 'em. One of the angriest and most musically brutal moments on the album, this song seems to rail against those who think they are right and won't listen to reason from anyone else. It's hard not to assume that Pete is railing against religious fundamentalism here. "But the chosen never wrong/Holding several thoughts/I'll take anything that's not bolted down!" he barks fiercely during the chorus, making one wonder if he's the oppressed or the oppressor in this case. It sounds to me like a thinly veiled potshot against those who tried to judge the band and force them into a particular category regarding their lyrics and behavior. As hard as it may be to hear, I think I'd be similarly p!ssed off if I were trying to express myself in a more artistic manner and somebody came down on me for it.

Tug-O-War
Go back and forth until it's learned
To suffer now or nothing's gained...
This song kind of ends up with a similar fate as "Forfeit" from the last album - nice intertwining of the vocals and guitar riffing from the beginning, and then the rest of the band is brought in, but it kind of dissolves into a lot of screaming as it chugs along. Actually, it feels a lot like the title track from Point #1, with a decent, soaring chorus before it falls headlong back into the same riff. It drives fast and hard, but does the same thing for a bit too long to really grab my attention.

To Return
Too many years free at last
He didn't know, so learned to speak
He clears his throat 'cause you can't miss this...
The concept of slavery crops up again in this mid-tempo tune, probably one of the least musically interesting numbers on the album. Pete's vocal performance is still strong here, and his words are a little easier to understand, talking about the crossover from childhood into adulthood and the desire to return to a more innocent time, even if that time was difficult. That's what I'm gathering regarding his desire "to return to the cold". It's a fine enough attempt, but the vocal layering and the way some of the words are growled starts to sound awfully close to a Tool epic like "The Patient" here, only without nearly as interesting of a riff or rhythm.

Emotional Drought
Let's turn our wretched debates into action
By diplomacy, gain back a handshake...
Oh, man. I'd say that Pete was coming dangerously close to evoking the ghost of Maynard James Keenan on this song, but Maynard ain't dead and therefore there's no ghost to be loaned out to aspiring young musicians. Chevelle will probably always be more musically straightforward than Tool as a general rule, but there's no denying the inspiration behind the nuances in Pete's voice and the little echo effect that trails along behind his fierce cry of "There's a choice to not end up like you!" Utilizing the 6/8 rhythm one last time, this song actually fares pretty strongly, managing to hook me even through a slight downshift in tempo during the bridge and an extensive, lung-busting screaming session near the end. I guess I'd rather hear Chevelle aping Tool than any band aping Creed, but still, it's probably getting about time for the band to change things up and veer away from such obvious stylistic similarities on future outings. Tool and A Perfect Circle are already enough Maynard for me.

Bend the Bracket
So the water's thickening
His collar's pulled, begin to be aware
It's on, that he needs to focus
Beyond that man, he brings a world of pain...
Now this is tasty - for once, an acoustic bookend on a heavier rock album isn't striking me as contrived. For one thing, the chord progression that gets picked out here is sufficiently melodic and haunting, unlike the dry "I figured out how to play this in five minutes" strumming that made "One Lonely Visitor" such a snooze fest. The dusty, unadorned percussion that sneaks in behind it helps to tie this track in with the rest of the record by not making it feel like a tacked-on solo track, and the ghostly vocal harmony manages to be a thing of beauty without giving the song too much of a "pretty" sound to it. It's a chilling ending, sorrowfully describing the surrender of one more faceless man to the disease of boredom, but I think that's the point of the album - zombie-like conformity to the world's expectations of us is the type of thinking that can do us in. Admittedly I'm a bit disappointed that they chose to end this one by fading it out - it doesn't feel quite complete that way. I think a tense ending on an unresolved chord would have worked better with the song's mood, but oh well, it's still an unexpectedly juicy piece.

While this album has its flaws, it's done an excellent job of holding my attention until the end. There are a few songs that run together in my mind, and a few that I have a tough time remembering the sound of after the album is done, but I'm certainly happier with this than I am with an album that I find myself wanting to turn off after the first five tracks have played through. Chevelle is pacing themselves a little better, and writing better songs, and while I can't say what the point of it all is, I'm proud of them for showing me that they have a little more of something on their minds than a lot of the bands competing with them for airtime these days.

ALBUM WORTH:
The Clincher $2
Get Some $1.50
Vitamin R (Leading Us Along) $1.50
Still Running $1
Breach Birth $1
Panic Prone $1
Another Know It All $1.50
Tug-O-War $.50
To Return $.50
Emotional Drought $1
Bend the Bracket $1.50
TOTAL: $13

Band Members:
Pete Loeffler: Lead vocals, guitar
Joe Loeffler: Bass, vocals
Sam Loeffler: Drums

Website: http://www.chevelleinc.com


Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Driving