Photo Credit: John Fulton
As we start to emerge from the hazy, pandemic nightmare of the past 18 months, live music fans are among the most excited to get out and celebrate a return to “normal.”
Collective Soul bassist Will Turpin said he saw that pent-up, positive energy in the crowds they played for on a recent eight-show mini-tour with Styx and expects it to continue all summer and beyond.
“We’re excited to get back out there on the road—it feels great to be back on stage,” said Turpin. “We enjoy what we do, we have fun, and we hope that the crowd takes on that same vibe—celebrating the music they’ve let into their lives.”
Collective Soul rocketed to international fame in 1993 with the rock anthem “Shine” and the multi-platinum quintet has a catalog of #1 hits under their belts that has helped shape and define alternative rock for the past two decades. Indelibly memorable tracks like “December,” “The World I Know,” “Gel,” “Heavy,” and “Precious Declaration” all evoke a collective sense of heartfelt observational universality and earnest positivity. They’ve sold over 20 million records worldwide and continue to average over one million Spotify streams per month.
“We consider our stage performance a celebration of life and try to make sure we don’t leave out people’s favorite memories. We’ve contributed to the soundtrack of people’s lives, and we don’t take that lightly.”
So much so, that the now 50-year-old Turpin still busts off a six-foot jump off the drum riser every time they play “Shine”. “Yeah, we missed it – but nothing feels different – we’re back and we’re thinking about the positivity we can bring playing live.”
Collective Soul performs at 8 p.m. Saturday, July 24, Waukesha County Fair.
