Compared to some of their peers in the alt-metal diaspora (TOOL, Deftones, Godsmack), Chevelle has always been among the most satisfyingly no-nonsense: a band that digs in, hits hard and keeps the conceptual stuff to a minimum without ever pandering to boneheads. While their profile has certainly grown since their days on the periphery of the Chicago underground, their sound—aggressive, dramatic, intense—has mostly stayed the course, connecting the dots between punk, hardcore, hard rock and metal without without ever cowing to fashion or straying from their base. If anything, the band’s continued success—and commitment to their vision—has made them a beacon for a devoted core of hard-rock fans, casually selling gold record after gold record way outside mainstream culture’s eye. They’ve been carrying the torch for more than 25 years. And their arms haven’t wavered yet.