‘Rock and Roll Express’ tour checks in at Utah State Fair
Collective Soul frontman Ed Roland jumps during "Shine" on Sept. 12 at the Utah State Fairpark. At right is his brother, rhythm guitarist Dean Roland.
Collective Soul frontman E Roland performs during a 2018 concert at the Utah State Fairpark. "We were formed in the '90s, but we're not a '90s band," says Collective Soul frontman E Roland, shown here during a show at the Utah State Fairpark in 2018. "We're still making music. I'm still writing. I'm still creating. And that's what's the driving force in this band."
Collective Soul frontman Ed Roland performs Wednesday at the Utah State Fairpark. Guitarist Jesse Triplett is pictured at right.
Collective Soul frontman Ed Roland sings during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark. His brother and rhythm guitarist Dean Roland is at right.
Collective Soul frontman E Roland offers up a peace sign to the crowd during the band's concert at the Utah State Fairpark on Sept. 12, 2018. "I never want to be judgmental because I'm not the end all to end all," Roland says. "I just want us to think about what we're saying, what we're doing and in the end love will win. It just does. The band returns to Utah on Tuesday, with a show at Sandy Amphitheater.
Collective Soul lead guitarist Jesse Triplett, drummer Johnny Rabb and bassist Will Turpin perform during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark.
Collective Soul frontman E Roland sings at the Utah State Fairpark in 2018. The band returns to Utah on Tuesday, with a show at Sandy Amphitheater.
Guitarist Dean Roland of Collective Soul performs on Wednesday night at the Utah State Fairpark.
Collective Soul frontman Ed Roland performs during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark. Also pictured is Johnny Rabb on drums and Will Turpin on bass.
Collective Soul bassist Will Turpin performs during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark.
Collective Soul frontman Ed Roland performs during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark.
Collective Soul drummer Johnny Rabb pounds out the beat during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark.
Collective Soul frontman Ed Roland plays piano during the band's breakout hit "Shine" at Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark.
Collective Soul lead guitarist Jesse Triplett cranks out some tuneage during a 2012 concert at the Utah State Fairpark. The band returns to Utah on Tuesday, with a show at Sandy Amphitheater.
Guitarist Dean Roland of Collective Soul performs at the Utah State Fairpark in 2018. The band returns to Utah on Tuesday, with a show at Sandy Amphitheater.
Collective Soul frontman Ed Roland sings during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark.
Collective Soul frontman E Roland offers up a peace sign to the crowd during the band's concert at the Utah State Fairpark on Sept. 12, 2018. "I never want to be judgmental because I'm not the end all to end all," Roland says. "I just want us to think about what we're saying, what we're doing and in the end love will win. It just does."
Collective Soul bassist Will Turpin performs during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark.
Brad Arnold, lead singer for 3 Doors Down, performs on Wednesday at the Utah State Fairpark.
3 Doors Down guitarists Chet Roberts, left, and Chris Henderson perform on Wednesday at the Utah State Fairpark.
3 Doors Down performs on Sept. 12 at the Utah State Fairpark. Pictured from left are lead singer Brad Arnold, guitarist Chris Henderson and bassist Justin Biltonen.
Chet Roberts of 3 Doors Down performs on Wednesday at the Utah State Fairpark.
Fans in the front rock out during 3 Doors Down at a concert on Sept. 12 at the Utah State Fairpark.
3 Doors Down bassist Justin Biltonen performs on Wednesday at the Utah State Fairpark.
3 Doors Down guitarist Chet Roberts solos while standing on a platform at stage left, alongside an American flag, during Wednesday's concert at the Utah State Fairpark.
3 Doors Down frontman Brad Arnold performs on Wednesday at the Utah State Fairpark.
3 Doors Down drummer Greg Upchurch performs on Wednesday at the Utah State Fairpark.
These two dolls adorn the microphone stand of 3 Doors Down guitarist Chet Roberts.
Getting a song stuck in your head can either be a blessing or a curse.
Thankfully, after Wednesday night’s concert at the Utah State Fairpark, that song is “Run” by Collective Soul, the Atlanta-based band that opened a co-headlining show with 3 Doors Down. Every time I sputtered awake in the wee hours of the night before getting up early to write this review, the lyrics and melody of “Run” were the first things to enter my mind.
”Are these times contagious … “
I don’t know if these times are, you know, contagious, but the tune and frontman Ed Roland’s plaintive vocals certainly are. And I’m not complaining one bit.
Part of the reason for that, to be sure, is because of how “Run” was performed Wednesday night. The band closed its one-hour, 15-minute set with the hit from its 1999 album “Dosage,” but it wasn’t just that. After the full band had weighed in on the song, the remaining musicians had all set aside their instruments, taken their bows and left the stage, leaving Roland alone with his acoustic guitar as he led the crowd through continued singalongs of the chorus.
Roland then slowly departed the stage himself, still strumming his acoustic guitar as the crowd kept singing along. This continued on for another minute with Roland playing along from somewhere backstage, and the crowd still singing out the chorus with gusto.
Now, the band has been using this very ending for several years — but it is no less dramatic or diminished in impact because of it. It’s simply an extremely cool way to close a show and serves to plant the chorus of that song firmly in the attendee’s mind. Mission accomplished!
Another trick in the Collective Soul concert playbook is performing new songs that haven’t even been released yet. With brazen confidence, the band opened the show with two such numbers — “Now’s the Time” and “Over Me” — that will not be released until next year. Both were great driving songs that are vintage Collective Soul.
Roland then sat down at the piano and noodled around for a minute before his playing the obvious melody for “Shine,” the band’s breakout single from 1993. This song, with the crowd chanting along at the appropriate times with an enthusiastic, “Yeah!” really propelled the momentum into the main portion of the set.
After “Shine,” Roland invited everyone to filter into the aisles and seats in front of the stage, and many in the crowd gladly obliged.
Collective Soul is simply a great live band. Roland fronts the show, with his superb vocals, acoustic guitar, and occasional keyboard dabblings. One could almost make the case that he also plays his microphone stand like an instrument. When not playing acoustic guitar, Roland would make wide and varied use of his mic stand — tilting and twirling it, shucking and jiving, and bobbing it back and forth with his leg. It was all entertaining and engaging.
Collective Soul employs a two-guitar attack, with Dean Roland and Jesse Triplett laying down a template of never-ending riffage over the rhythm of bassist Will Turpin and drummer Johnny Rabb. Songs like “Heavy,” “Why, Pt. 2,” “Better Now” and “December” were all delivered superbly.
Later in the set, Collective Soul performed “Right as Rain,” a new song which first appeared on the band’s 2017 live album.
“We snuck a new one on you right there,” Ed Roland said. “What’d ya think? Cool? Good, ’cause we’re going to lay another one on you right now.”
That new one turned out to be “Observation of Thought,” another song which won’t be released until next year. The song starts slowly with acoustic guitar dominating, but turns into a full band number, and it featured a great, melodic guitar solo from Triplett.
Ed Roland introduced “Gel” by noting that it was the very first song he wrote with the band.
“What pisses me off,” he said of the song’s lyrical message, “is people still don’t get it 25 years later. … Let’s listen, learn and love … and after that, we’ll be able to ‘Gel.’ “
“Where the River Flows” appeared in the penultimate spot of the set, and the full-bore rocker is perfectly placed there as it gets the crowd totally juiced before transitioning into the softer, haunting melodies of “Run.”
I’ve mentioned this before, but it’s too bad that recent visits to Utah have seen Collective Soul chafing under the confines of a shorter opening set. It would be great to see the band be able to play a more expanded 90-minute to two-hour show. The band’s back catalog — not to mention its penchant for introducing fresh, unreleased material — would easily support the extra time.
Wednesday’s stop on the “Rock and Roll Express” tour was headlined by 3 Doors Down. The Mississippi-based mainstream rockers powered through a hit-laden 17-song set over the course of an hour and 20 minutes.
The band started strong, with energetic renditions of a pair of No. 1 singles — “Duck and Run” and “It’s Not My Time” — sandwiched around single “Time of My Life.”
The band’s set focused heavily on material from its first two albums, with 11 of the 17 songs coming from those releases, including “Away From the Sun,” “Dangerous Game,” “The Road I’m On,” “Better Life,” “Be Like That” and “Changes” among others.
Much of the band’s stage energy comes from guitarists Chris Henderson and Chet Roberts, along with bassist Justin Biltonen. The trio roamed the stage freely, and often stepped up on platforms at both sides of the stage either to perform solos or just for added flair.
Lead singer Brad Arnold was in excellent vocal form throughout the evening. Arnold is somewhat of a straightforward performer live — no grandiosity but making up for it with sincerity. He would often thank the crowd simply after many songs, but rarely said more than that until near the end of the show.
“Behind Those Eyes,” a single off the 2005 album “Seventeen Days,” was one of the set’s late highlights as it moved from a slow burn into a full-band power romp. The ending was especially frenetic, with all the band members gathered around drummer Greg Upchurch as he literally pounded his kit ferociously in bringing the song to its conclusion.
The band closed the main set with a pair of No. 1 hits, “Loser” and “Kryptonite,” and returned for a two-song encore of “Here Without You” and “When I’m Gone.” Arnold dedicated the last song to first responders and members of the U.S. armed forces.
3 DOORS DOWN
Utah State Fairpark
Sept. 12, 2018
Duck and Run
Time of My Life
It’s Not My Time
Away From the Sun
Let Me Go
Dangerous Game
The Road I’m On
Landing in London
Better Life
Be Like That
Changes
My Way
Behind Those Eyes
Loser
Kryptonite
Encore
Here Without You
When I’m Gone
Performance time: 1 hour, 20 minutes
COLLECTIVE SOUL
Now’s the Time
Over Me
Shine
Heavy
Why, Pt. 2
Better Now
Precious Declaration
December
Right as Rain
Observation of Thought
The World I Know
Gel
Where the River Flows
Run
Performance time: 1 hour, 15 minutes