'Live music boils down to emotion': Will Turpin of Collective Soul shares band's philosophy
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Two bands that got their start in the '90s will be performing together for the first time this summer.
Collective Soul, based in Atlanta, and Switchfoot, based in San Diego, will be co-headlining on July 20 at Kemba Live, 405 Neil Ave.
“We're fans of their music, and we think the energy is going to be great. The sum will be greater than its parts. I think a lot of our fans will enjoy Switchfoot, and vice versa. It can't get any better than that, really,” said Will Turpin, who has been playing bass for Collective Soul since its beginnings in 1992.
He has been working closely on making music since then with lead vocalist and songwriter Ed Roland and his brother, rhythm guitarist Dean Roland.
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The band — best-known for early hits including “Shine,” “The World I Know” and “December” — released the album “Blood” in 2019 to celebrate its 25th anniversary, and will release a new album, “Vibrating,” in August.
The distance between the two albums is actually not as great as it seems: Both were recorded at the same time. At first, the band contemplated releasing a double album. Then, they planned to release a second album in 2020.
COVID put a stop to that, and they waited until they were touring consistently again to release the new material.
“We think of it as phase one and phase two,” Turpin said. “Last year, we didn't have a lot of dates, and we just kept working on mixes, and taking our time. We're super-proud of it. It's a strong record.”
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Though Ed Roland generally writes the melodies and lyrics for the group's songs before they get together to record, the other musicians also play a significant role in the final product.
“I take a big role with the foundation of the music, with the rhythm section,” Turpin said. “And how to run transitions smoothly from one section to another. Ed is more in charge of the ornamental stuff that goes on. But we're all involved in all of it.”
Besides working on fine-tuning the new album, and working on his own music, during the past two years Turpin has also taken over the record studio that his father ran for 40 years outside Atlanta, Real 2 Reel.
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“I have a passion for working with younger artists, seeing where they can go with their craft,” he said.
Right now, he's working on putting out albums for a young female pop singer, an eight-piece band with a horn section, and a prog-rock band.
“So I'm all over the place with my styles, and I enjoy all of them.”
But for the next couple months, he will be concentrating on touring.
“After touring for so many years, the way we approach the live shows is as a celebration of life, rather than us worrying about technical things. Live music boils down to emotion. That's what people are attracted to. The emotions it makes them feel, the memories it brings back. When we play live, we're not that band that sticks exactly to the CD, but we're also not that band that jams too much. We just try to make sure that the emotion is clear and present,” he said.
“We're going to get in that big room with everybody and celebrate the memories, celebrate the songs, celebrate life and enjoy being able to be together in the same room.”
At a glance
Collective Soul and Switchfoot will perform at 6 p.m. July 20 at Kemba Live, 405 Neil Ave. Tickets: $44.50 (614-461-5483, promowestlive.com)
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Collective Soul and Switchfoot to perform at Kemba Live in Columbus
