'You're only young and new and cool once.' Collective Soul still finds a way to shine

Collective Soul returns to Cincinnati on Tuesday, July 26, to share songs from the band's new album, “Vibrating,” due out Aug. 12. Their catchy up-front riffs on hits like “Shine” and “Heavy,” and lush orchestral production on “The World I Know” and “December,” tethered by singer Ed Roland’s uplifting baritone, are earworms of '90s alternative-rock nostalgia.

Bassist Will Turpin and I recently discussed the new tunes, the band’s early days working at his father’s studio and his current work with Cincinnati rockers the Summit.

Question: Do you have any stories about coming through Cincinnati?

Answer: We've always had fun in Cincinnati. I got to go to opening day of baseball there. That was fun. Everybody's got some crazy stories from Bogart's. Some of the first times we came through Cincinnati, shows were packed out there. We had a lot of energy in the room.

Q: You grew up in Stockbridge, Georgia, and your father owned Real 2 Reel studio there. When I heard your earlier singles as a kid, I was blown away by the production. Then I went back to read about the band and I gathered that your first album was basically a bunch of demos, which was really surprising. How did your sound come together? Did growing up in a studio environment influence your tastes?

A: Definitely. Ed was one of the head engineers at my father's studio. So between Ed being six or seven years older than the rest of the band, and being a full-time engineer, we were basically all studio rats. That's totally a part of our strength. We all had opportunities to learn in the studio before anybody even played in high school. It wasn't Southern Tracks, but my dad did a good job of putting together a professional studio.

I took over for my father's ownership. And I've even got a band that I'm producing right now from Cincinnati – the Summit. Chris (Scott) and Mike (Hennel) came down about six weeks ago. We've finished up vocals. We've got five songs – a little EP. I'll be done mixing it in maybe about a month. They got to open up a few shows for us, and then we became friends. They were like, “We're coming down to your place to record.” They drove down and we had a blast.

Q: Collective Soul formed nearly 30 years ago. How has the songwriting evolved over time? Does Ed bring the songs or is it more of a collaborative thing now?

A: It's become more collaborative. Then we would make a lot out of jam sessions. Ed would have a riff and we would just see where it goes. And we do that a little bit now, but Ed's songwriting has gotten more prolific as well. He has a lot more fleshed-out ideas than he used to when he was younger. He comes to us with the framework and we try to turn it into a Collective Soul song.

Q: I assume a lot of the production of the new album happened over quarantine. How did quarantine affect that album's process?

A: Actually, we had finished recording that one right before quarantine, so we were just listening to mixes during quarantine, but that’s easy. We don't really sit there in the studio and listen to Shawn (Grove) mix. We did get together and record some other stuff during quarantine, but that record actually had been tracked already.

Q: How did it feel having to sit on it for three years?

A: It kind of sucked because it's so good. It's really one of our best records from beginning to end. You're only young and new and cool once, but in our 50s, we’re making music and doing it in a real mature way and still trying to find that emotion that everybody's attracted to when it comes to rock 'n' roll. It's past the X's and O's. We let the technical side of our brains go. We just try to find that flow. And if the flow is right, then the emotion gets in there.

Q: I also listened to your solo album, "Serengeti Drivers." How does your approach to a Collective Soul song differ from your solo work?

A: It's still creating, but most of my solo stuff starts with a piano, or the Whirly, or the Rhodes sound. It's just more that I imagine what my solo sound would be like. With Collective Soul, I'm kind of in charge of the rhythm section – the ups and downs – making sure the basic framework is solid. I'm more focused on the foundation of the song and then it gets into the more ornamental stuff where, with my stuff, I do all of it.

Q: Collective Soul's earlier songs in particular, and your solo music, have a lot of spiritual imagery. What role does spirituality play in your life and in the band?

A: We know that there's something that's bigger than all of us. Positivity, prayer, whatever you want to do, I think all those things are real. When you have a thought, it goes out into the universe frequency. That's why we came up with the album name – it's about frequencies. We can combine science and spirituality and figure out there's something else out there and it's all connected somehow. And we can manifest that through lyrics. A lot of it's Christian overtones because we grew up in the Christian church.

Q: How did you get hooked up with Switchfoot for this tour?

A: We've talked about touring with them for decades. We played different festivals with them over the years and had different opportunities to share the stage with them. Our managers and promoters were ready to put us together. You try to find those combinations that are worth more than the individual parts. Collective Soul and Switchfoot is a one-and-one-equals-three kind of thing because a lot of their fans will cross over to us and vice versa.

Collective Soul, Switchfoot and Jade Jackson

When: 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 26.

Where: PromoWest Pavilion at Ovation, 101 W. Fourth St., Newport.

Tickets: $39.50-$75.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Collective Soul to shine in Cincinnati for new 'Vibrating' album