Working on their latest album, "Vena Sera," in Las Vegas was like a vacation for the members of Chicago rock act Chevelle [ tickets ]. The group--which is now on tour--drove around in a flashy Lamborghini, and partook in some poker games and slot machines.

It was a marked change from the group's previous recording sessions.

"Typically, we've gone to far away places in, like, the woods, where somebody's got a studio," guitarist/vocalist Pete Loeffler told LiveDaily. "It's so isolated, you can really think and you can really unwind and all that.

"We didn't want to do that [this time]. We wanted to be where the action was, where things were going on at all times, day or night. Do something the opposite. A lot of our friends gave us crap: 'You can't get anything done in Vegas.' I think we proved them wrong."

"Vena Sera," which features the hit "Well Enough Alone," debuted at No. 12 on The Billboard 200 chart upon its April 2007 release, selling 60,000 copies in its first week. Fans likely noticed a change in Loeffler's vocals on the album.

"A lot of these vocals were done in the upper register of my vocal palette," he said. "So that is something I wanted to explore.

"When you go and see these songs live, it's a little more difficult for me. But it's a little more rewarding when I can nail it every night. I think I'm sort of moving away from the almighty heavy screamo type thing. I've done that for so long and I'm moving into more melodic [vocals]. I wanted to focus more on the sing-y aspect of it. Ultimately, I don't see us changing to be a lighter band. I just see us changing into sort of a more musically focused [band], hopefully. I think that's what everybody's kind of leaning toward. It's difficult to do. It's hard to change. If you don't really change, you're not going to be progressing; that's always bad."

Not only have Loeffler's vocals changed, but the line-up has as well. Out is bassist and brother, Joe Loeffler, and in is brother-in-law/bassist Dean Bernardini. They are joined by another Loeffler brother, Sam, on drums. Pete Loeffler said having Bernardini in the band is "great."

"He had great ideas for 'Vena Sera,'" said Loeffler."He's such a talented musician in general. We didn't really have that before. We have a unity. We agreed on things. Things got talked out and worked out for the better as we went. We just never had that before so it was a really positive thing."

When asked about his brother, Joe, he said, "You know, I don't really speak to him so I'm not sure [what he's doing]. That's it in a nutshell. I hope one day that I will, but it's kind of up to him."