Honesty. A characteristic which December artist-of-the-month Chevelle exudes, from their music and lyrics right through to drummer Sam Loeffler’s handshake. Hailing from the northern suburbs of Chicago, Chevelle thrives at creating and disseminating passionate, intelligent rock the urgency of which cannot be ignored, unless you are a soulless chucklehead incapable of feeling joy or pain. The three-piece band’s latest release, Wonder What’s Next, is a taut, well-oiled machine reflective of the band’s muscle-car namesake. A November 23rd tour-stop in Atlanta, appearing in concert with fellow rockers Stone Sour and Sinch, provides an opportunity for witnessing Chevelle’s live-performance, as well as a chance to kick the tires and take a look under Chevelle’s hood.

Arriving for an interview with the mild-mannered Sam two hours prior to the show, he punctually greets me outside the venue. His bandmates, guitarist/vocalist Pete Loeffler and bassist Joe Loeffler (yes, they are brothers), are addressing other media-types and leave me with a mono-y-mono meeting with the pretense-less drummer. I later find his Clark Kent-like persona transforms upon his pre-concert retreat to the tour bus, Sam emerging onstage as a fiercely intense performer, pounding the skins with reckless abandon. But for the next forty-five minutes, Sam is conscientious and straightforward as we discuss music, the industry, and the value of a good mullet.

Growing up amid a sea of seven siblings, the brothers’ Loeffler began their musical adventures over a decade ago. Sam (27-years-old) and Pete (25-years-old) began toying with their respective instruments during their pre-teen years, joined by Joe (22-years-old) and his bass several years later. Although heavily influenced by the precise, soul-thumping music of mid-90’s rock luminaries Helmet and Quicksand, in addition to the cerebral/emotional assault of Tool (who Sam calls "the band that everybody compares themselves to"), Chevelle’s music has become an animal all its own. Pete’s vocals vary from primeval howls to borderline whimpers, expressing the angst of deeply personal issues while crying for an answer. Additionally, the lyrics to the cuts on Wonder What’s Next wring with the sincerity of Johnny Cash in his prime.

Backstage at the Earthlink Live concert venue, I plop my just-plumped-for-the-holidays rear into a velvety dressing room chair and delve into the inner machinations that make Chevelle run. Inquiries are made as to who of the three is most anal-retentive, and Sam responds that "We are all perfectionists. In fact, our crew and people like that come down on us for that. They’re like, ‘just relax!’"

The conversation shifts to particular aspects of songs on WWN, and I espouse my love for the song "Comfortable Liar." Sam appreciates the kudos but remarks that it will probably never be released as a single. This perks my interest: how does a song become a single? "It’s strange, you can’t really guess at all," laughs Sam, acknowledging that a number of people supply input into such a decision. " ‘The Red’ ended up being the first single and, ironically, was the least liked song before we went in and recorded it. Our manager was like ‘I hate this song. I don’t even want you guys to record it. I HATE this song!’ Now it’s his favorite song on the record." Naturally, I ask what changed management’s opinion, to which Sam replies, "the song didn’t change, but the production did."

My research into the band’s background reveals their philosophy that music can be a great release for pent-up frustration and aggression, a belief which I adhere to as well. Supporting this maxim, Sam elaborates that " ‘Send the Pain Below’ (the next single off WWN) is about taking the hardships in your life and making art out of it, because, you gotta get it out someway. For Pete, and probably the rest of us, the frustration you go through you can vent into something good." While the intelligence of Chevelle’s music is obvious, Sam’s thoughtful and polite responses are refreshing when juxtaposed with the more common "f*** this" and "f***ing sh**" retorts of today’s musicians (myself a notorious potty-mouth as well).

Thus, I must question them about their well-known disdain for "Rock Star" attitudes and their battle (in the face of ever-growing notoriety) to keep level heads. "We have these things called ‘Rock Star Moments’ where people have done things to us, like when various artists have ‘Rock Starred’ out on us for no reason at all," explains Sam, reflecting on past experiences with the musicians’ disease of self-importance. "The only reason that would happen would be to completely lose perspective of who you are and why you’re doing this."

One automatically wonders why Chevelle has waited three years to follow-up their moderately successful (relatively speaking) 1999 debut Point #1. The answer: lawyers, lawyers, and more lawyers. Knowing all too well the murky waters of litigation (I, too, possess the "Asshole Card" better known as a license to practice law), I ask Sam to enlighten my fair readers as to the circumstances of this snafu.

"It’s really not that complicated. The company we had signed with folded, and we couldn’t get out of the deal in order to put out another record, because they had a parent company…. The case was in court for eleven months and settled out of court the day before the trial date." While the band is satisfied with the work of their main attorney, Sam does speak of one lawyer brought in to do the trial work: "We paid the guy $35,000 and never met him." Classic.

Another spoke in the wheel-house of Chevelle-rumors is the debate over whether they are a Christian rock band. Religion not being a subject I usually cross-examine total strangers about, the recent chatter filling local radio airwaves about possible proselytizing in their music necessitates the inquiry. "It’s something that’s probably going to follow us around forever and that’s fine. It’s pretty simple. We originally signed with a record company that was backed by Word (a Christian label housing John Tesh and Amy Grant), so the record (Point #1) was in Christian bookstores. It was really an accidental thing."

Assuring me that the band had nothing to do with the Christian rock industry, Sam states that they are "recovering Catholics" who are still Christians, but that any religious attitudes on the part of Chevelle’s members are distinctly separate from the band and their music. With repeated listens to WWN, I feel qualified to state that there are no sermons detected on the album. Now I can enjoy Chevelle’s music without fear of subliminal Christian messages intruding my subconscious. Thank God, no pun intended.

Finishing up this respective tour in December, the brothers’ Loeffler are ready for a break. Having been on the road performing shows since March, the band plans on a jaunt to Hawaii upon this trip’s completion. The guys still live outside Chicago, and when asked about their current housing situation, Sam chuckles that "we’re actually homeless right now." Not in the sense most think, though, as they have plenty of adoring family and friends to take in our haggard road warriors upon their return to the great midwest.

I follow with a question about the biggest perk of Chevelle’s newfound popularity, and Sam immediately responds that "the show’s have changed drastically after OzzFest and after our record was released. It sort of just hit." How so, I prod? "People recognize the music and recognize us as a band. That makes all the difference." Sam qualifies this, though, with the comment, that "if you suck, people remember that, too."

On November 23, 2002, Chevelle’s performance does not suck. Jumping ahead to address the band’s on-stage abilities, it is obvious the Loeffler boys have spent years playing together, as their timing is remarkable. Pete at times resembles a hermit-crab, crouching with his guitar slung well below the strike-zone as he operates mere inches from concert-goers admiring hands, strumming his axe forcefully. Joe works onlookers into a frenzy by repeatedly tossing picks into a crowd of youths that will no doubt treasure them as souvenirs for years to come. Sam thunders with the backbone Chevelle’s sonic attack, ferocious yet technically sound.

Often-times, the quality and passion of a band’s sound does not translate from the studio to the stage. Chevelle not only captures the emotion of the music recorded on WWN, but invites and is joined by the paying public in digesting the experience. No offense to the bands sharing the stage with Chevelle this evening, but their music and personas remind one more of late-80’s knuckle-drag rock than anything Chevelle is accomplishing. My only complaint with Chevelle’s show is their failure to play "Closure", one of my favorite tunes off WWN. Otherwise, it is a great performance.

Wondering What’s Next

Other than concluding their current tour, Chevelle is scheduled to begin shooting a video for "Send the Pain Below" on December 9th. "We’re excited about doing that video, we are going to shoot it in New York City." Sam says the format will be a live-performance video, in order to "focus on what we do as a band."

Asked about the process of creating a video, Sam notes that filming "The Red" was an enjoyable experience. "We filmed it in one long day, about nineteen hours. We had a really good time, a great time." The video, set in a classroom during the midst of an anger management meeting, alternates between chaos and calm. As the song progresses, the meeting erupts into a full-scale brawl, complete with folding chairs and other wrasslin’ antics.

I ask Sam about a particular character, seated amongst the video’s class attendees, who looks familiar to me; one who I am sure to have seen as a villainous character in films before, yet can’t directly place. Not sure which fellow I speak of, Sam states that "except for two guys, everybody else there were hired extras. Our tour manager was one of the guys fighting. Another one of our friends, Rob, was the guy with the major mullet and the camouflage pants."

Never one to pass up an opportunity to discuss my admiration for anyone ballsy enough to sport a mullet, I inquire as to the authenticity of Rob’s mullet. "He calls it a ‘bum-out.’ He actually cuts his hair like that and wears Iron Maiden shirts on purpose. He drives a ’79 Trans Am." Any rational person would question a person’s sanity after hearing such nonsense, but Sam senses and explains this by stating, "he says that not only does it get him acting jobs, because people need ‘that guy’, but it gets him girls. He says girls just love it!" Taking a nod from ‘80s torchbearers Bill and Ted, I exclaim "excellent."

Additionally, the group has begun to dabble in the business of recording songs for movie soundtracks. The first venture into this realm is a song recorded for the upcoming film Daredevil, an adaptation of the same-titled Marvel comic and starring J-Lo-ass worshiping Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner (release date - Valentine’s Day 2003). "It’s really cool because we were able to use a track (titled "Until You’ve Reformed") that we recorded ourselves, it’s not on WWN. We recorded it exclusively for the movie."

Soon, though, the members of Chevelle can enjoy some much-deserved relaxation. Noting that they will have some time to reflect on their recent successes, I give Sam four factors relevant to a band’s success and ask him which is the most important. "In order of most important to least important, I would say 1) luck, 2) who you know, 3) hard work, and then 4) talent. Because there are lots of talented people out there who will never go anywhere. But you can’t get anywhere without at least some of all of those things." My accompanying lackey Mark insightfully quips, "well, some people seem to have gotten by without talent." Sam smiles and sheepishly agrees with said observation without naming names.

But for now, the members of Chevelle look forward to some much-needed rest and relaxation. For these guys, that consists of fast cars, motorcycles, and (surprise) "actually still play(ing) music. We have a lot of gear, so we don’t have to have all our tour equipment with us." Here’s hoping the members of Chevelle enjoy their break and remain the accessible, focused band that they are today. As long as they check their oil every few thousand miles, Chevelle should continue to tear up the music highway for years to come. Visit the band at www.chevelleinc.com.

Chuck Boring