Skillet, “Revolution.”

Skillet took on a Revolution of its own while recording its 12th album. The hard rock band took out the middleman—a label—and went the independent route. The quartet then worked at its own pace, with guitarist Korey Cooper and longtime collaborators producing. The result brings a familiar sound, save for a few wrinkles.

The band builds on its signature of guitar-laden stadium rock anthems with frontman and bassist John Cooper taking on a lion’s share of the singing and drummer Jen Ledger sometimes pitching in. The recipe has proven successful, both in Christian rock circles and with secular modern rock audiences.

Opener “Showtime” embodies all of these things; it’s a raging rock tune with a slick sheen that could double as a WWE wrestler theme song. Cooper and Ledger deliver a high-energy call-and-response chorus that gets charged quickly.

The album’s weaker spots are, ironically, the pair of singles Skillet has already released. Mid-tempo grunge rocker “Unpopular” is a tongue-in-cheek ode to nonconformity that doesn’t move the needle like the rest of the material that surrounds it.

“If freedom is disease, who would ever want to be popular?/ For what it’s worth, I think today’s a good day to be unpopular,” Cooper declares.

“All that Matters” is an improvement and offers a change of pace, though the rock-meets-country meets pop sound feels stale. The urgency returns with a vengeance on the guitar-driven “Not Alone,” with a fierce vocal attack, and a blistering solo. Mixing in some flourishes of strings, it’s one of the highlights on the record. The aggressive title track has a call to “march to the beat of love.” Cooper’s wordy delivery in the verses paves the way for the powerful chorus. Raucous album closer “Death Defier’ later delivers with grand drums and guitar solos.

The dynamic “Ash in the Wind” mixes melodic verses with a heavier chorus, with Ledger providing an atmospheric vocal outro in the closing moments.

“I wanna break out but I’m frozen/ I’ve been here so long that it hurts just to feel/ I wanna take back what you’ve stolen,” Cooper sings.

The uplifting “A Fire Inside,” about overcoming adversity, again sees Cooper and Ledger trading vocals back and forth in the chorus. It’s a message of individuality, belonging and overcoming struggle that permeates much of Revolution. The band has lived in that space for more than two decades. There are some political undertones to the message, but its a point that’s made implicitly rather than overtly.

A pair of love ballads hit in very different ways. “Defector” is a decidedly hard power ballad with a message of love and commitment, with a healthy dose of guitar riffs. “Happy Wedding Day (Alex’s Song)” takes on a softer touch. It’s a tribute to Korey and John Cooper’s daughter getting married. The sweet acoustic track has a surprisingly infectious quality and is one of the better songs on the album. It’ll appeal to fans of the band who grew up with “Saturn.”

Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald.