COLLECTIVE SOUL

Rock & Roll Express Tour
Mohegan Sun Arena
Uncasville, Connecticut
August 16, 2018

Photos & Review by Dan Wenc

The Rock & Roll Express Tour Featuring Collective Soul and 3 Doors Down was full steam ahead at the Mohegan Sun Casino Arena. Soul Asylum had also been on this tour, but was not in the package for that night. This arrangement of bands together proved to be a perfect mix featuring bands of the mid 90’s era through the early 2000’s, who have been making great music outside of the post-grunge era.

The night kicked off with Collective Soul taking the stage with “Now’s The Time” followed up with “Over Me” and the 1993 debut single and Billboard Award winning and chart topping “Shine”. This was a treat that fired up the crowd. Ed Roland got behind the keyboard which was covered by the Collective Soul logo. The song started out in its mellow fashion, and as it progressed to the heavy parts, Ed and company brought the stage alive with movement and energy that fueled the crowd.

Ed Roland took the stage and was full of energy and passion firing up the crowd. Collective Soul is Ed Roland (Lead Vocals/Guitar), Dean Roland (Guitar), Will Turpin (Bass), Jesse Triplett (Guitar) and Johnny Rabb (Drums), who held a title of the World’s Fastest Drummer by playing 1,071 single strokes in 60 seconds.

Music can bring you back to a time and place in your life, for me Collective Soul came about during the later part of my high school years. Collective Soul surfaced in a post-grunge era of music. Part of what Collective Soul did, was broke through that grunge era style of popular music of that time. No one might have known it was happening at that time, but Collective Soul was moving new worlds in terms of the transcending rock scene of the time. Collective Soul brought a new version of rock in to the post grunge world, for new fans and rock fans of the 80’s who were looking for something other than grunge. This show was a sign that since Collective Soul is still going strong and passionate about their music. It was evident in the vibe and turnout of the crowd.

Collective Soul has had great success and many of the songs in addition to great popularity, have appeared in many television and movies.

Collective Soul sounded great with a crisp studio sound. Watching Ed Roland perform was an experience in and of itself. He sang, he jumped, he moved, he played the acoustic guitar, keyboard and most of all, entertained! Ed brought more than just the songwriting, singing and playing of the music, he brought his passion to the performance. He was a conductor of the crowd. Watching him move about the stage, dancing and moving in sync with the music showed the deep energy within his songs.

Ed changed hats through the nights sets with “Heavy”, “Why, Pt. 2”, “Better Now”, Precious Declaration” and “December”. Collective Soul entered “Right as Rain” seamlessly into the set, which was released in 2017 from the “LIVE” album. The new song was well received by the crowd. A great song that fit right into the mix and prompted me to purchase the album on iTunes right after the show for the ride home.

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They played new material and the Collective Soul classics, the songs that have made them great, including “Observation of Thoughts”, “The World I Know”. Only good things to continue to come from Collective Soul in the future, as Ed Roland announced that they planned on releasing a double album next year. Ed spoke with the crowd at various intervals throughout the night. Prior to “Gel” Ed instructed the crowd to listen, learn and love… and then gel.

The night closed out with “Where the River Flows” and “Run”. The night was a success for everyone. It was a night all about great music. Collective Soul has been out on the road over the past few years, and they are continuing on with this tour with 3 Doors Down of several more dates through September, early October. Check them out at a city near you, and check out the 2017 released “LIVE” album, if you haven’t already. Overall great show, Collective Soul hit the mark on entertainment that night. When you see the band happy and smiling on the stage, it brings a new energy to the crowd and lets you know all is well in the world of music.