Staind's newest album, "The Illusion Of Progress," wasn't even out when it had the music press buzzing over reports that it would feature some fresh wrinkles in the group's edgy hard rock sound.

Singer Aaron Lewis was quoted in a pre-release MTV.com article as saying "The Illusion Of Progress" would surprise the band's fans. There were mentions that the album included several songs with pedal steel guitar and another track with a gospel-styled chorus.

But in a recent phone interview, Lewis sought to put things in perspective, saying the album and any musical shifts people might perceive really just represent standard operating procedure for Staind.

"Isn't that what you're supposed to do every time you go into the studio?" Lewis asked. "My theory has been proven wrong by a lot of bands that seem to go into the studio and write the same record over and over and over again. But that's something that we've always tried to steer away from — writing the same record over and over again."

If the idea of exploring fresh musical territory was planned all along, what surprised the group, according to Lewis, was the type of music that emerged during the writing process.

"We went into it thinking we were going to write the heaviest record ever, for us anyway," he said. "And we started writing songs, and that's not the (type of) songs that were coming out. The songs that were coming out were good songs, so we didn't want to throw them away just because they weren't the heaviest songs we'd ever written."

Lewis offered his take on some of the contrasts that make "The Illusion Of Progress" different from Staind's other albums.

"There's more texture," he said. "There are guitar solos, there's tasty little stuff, there's a lot of old instruments and instruments that never got used on another Staind record... There was a lot of focus and time spent on getting tones and making the songs better."

The new wrinkles on the CD — such as the sparse and acoustic "Tangled Up In You" and the gospel/blues overtones of "The Corner" — could make "The Illusion Of Progress" a CD that could redefine Staind.

And the band's musical image is something that has in certain ways proven problematic for Lewis and his bandmates — guitarist Mike Mushok, bassist Johnny April and drummer Jon Wysocki.

Formed in the mid-1990s in Springfield, Mass., Staind's agitated and aggressive sound initially prompted some to lump the band into the nu metal category. That label, Lewis said, never fit the group's sound or its musical intent.

"We've always tried to make sure we weren't pigeonholed into being one thing or another thing," he said. "That's one of the reasons that the whole nu metal label that was always put on us always irritated me. Jesus, what have we got, three songs that would fall under the classification of nu metal, and then all the rest of them are straight up rock."

The group's real rise to prominence, in fact, came with songs far removed from metal. After Staind's million-selling major label debut album, "Dysfunction," had run its course, an acoustic version of the group's ballad, "Outside" was included on the "Family Values Tour '99" live CD. With Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst joining Lewis on vocals, this version of "Outside" became a runaway hit.

Then to preview its next CD, 2001's "Break The Cycle," Staind released the ballad "It's Been Awhile," and it, too, became a smash hit and helped propel "Break The Cycle" to a chart-topping debut on the "Billboard" magazine album chart and sales of more than five million copies before all was said and done.

The next two CDs, 2003's "14 Shades Of Grey" and "Chapter V" each debuted atop the album chart, but Lewis's hopes for a fourth straight debut at No. 1 were dashed when "The Illusion Of Progress" checked in at No. 3 on "Billboard" magazine's album chart after its release last summer.

The CD, though, has generated a major hit single in "Believe," which topped the "Billboard" modern rock chart and went top five at mainstream rock.

Staind hopes to keep the momentum rolling with this summer's "Stimulate This" tour. The band put together a lineup that features Shinedown, Chevelle and Halestorm as the opening acts.

The tour carries a top ticket price of about $40 in most markets and as low as around $10 for lawn or standing room tickets for some shows.

Lewis, in a late-June conference call with reporters, said the tour, as its title indicates, is something of a musical protest against the sagging economy and corporate bailouts.

"I was like, in frustration, 'What can we do for our summer tour to at least try to help some people to make it affordable for them to come and see a good show?'" Lewis said. "The first step was to find a bunch of bands that were willing to be a part of it and willing to make a little bit less than they might have made going out and headlining a tour. But it made it so we could offer a very affordable show with a whole bunch of bands."

Staind, with Shinedown, Chevelle and Halestorm

When: Friday, July 10, at 7 p.m., July 10

Where: Meadowbrook U.S. Cellular Pavilion, 72 Meadowbrook Lane, Gilford, N.H.

Tickets: $49, $39, $25

Info: 603-293-4700 or http://www.meadowbrook.net/

AND

When: Tuesday, July 14, at 7 p.m.

Where: Bank Of America Pavilion, 290 Northern Ave., Boston

Tickets: $35 and $20

Info: 617-728-1600 or www.livenation.com/venue/bank-of-america-pavilion-tickets