Any Collective Soul concert is a good concert, however once in a while, there is something that makes a show special. Watching Collective Soul once again take the stage at the legendary Toad’s Place qualifies as one of those “special” shows.
Please scroll below for the MisplacedStraws Collective Soul live photos and review –
Before you can discuss this show, a little history is needed. Toad’s Place in New Haven, CT is a legendary music venue. Bob Dylan, Rolling Stones, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and just a few days prior to Collective Soul, the Foo Fighters have all played the club which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. My introduction to Collective Soul took place at this very club on May 22, 1994. Their debut, Hints Allegations and Things Left Unsaid was released on Atlantic two months prior, and a local radio station brought the band to Toad’s the day after my college graduation for $0.99. I was hooked, and the band became a favorite of mine for the next 31 years.
Collective Soul returned to Toad’s Place in 2004 during a commercially rough time for the band. Twenty-one years after that set, and thirty-one years after their debut, Collective Soul made a triumphant return to the Toad’s stage in front of a packed house. The 1,000-capacity venue was filled with people singing every word along with Ed Roland. Set-wise, the band stuck close to what we’ve seen since the release of 2024’s Here to Eternity, kicking off with “Mother’s Love”, “Heavy”, and “Right As Rain”, from 2019’s Blood.
The band is always energetic on stage, but it did seem like frontman Ed Roland, guitarists Dean Roland and Jesse Triplett, bassist Will Turpin and drummer Johnny Rabb, along with Tristen Turpin on keyboards, felt the uniqueness of the night and cranked the energy up a little more. It was a pleasure to have the aching “Compliment” back into the set and it provided a great lead-in for the monster riff of “Shine”. As the band stormed through their debut single, the crowd became a sea of phones with people trying to capture the moment. Memories came flooding back of being a 21-year-old kid with the world ahead of me, standing in the exact same spot, watching a young, hungry band unleash a riff that caught the attention of everyone who heard it.
Coming out of “Shine”, the band returned to its latest release with the welcome addition of “Not The Same” and “Keep It On Track”, which was also featured on their summer tour. Much like those summer shows, the current arrangement of “She Said”, featuring Ed Roland and Jesse Triplett on guitar is a true highlight of the show. “Tremble for My Beloved”, added into the set for the summer tour also stayed in the set. Collective Soul is a band that tends to stick to the hits live, so it was great to hear some deep cuts and newer songs played.
The final run of songs leans heavily on the self-titled second release. If memory serves, some of these songs were played in very early forms back in that 1994 show. While “Shine” established the band, it was the second record, featuring “The World I Know”, “December”, “Gel”, and “Where The River Flows” that really made the band, and the crowd reached a fever pitch as those songs led up to the traditional last song, the absolutely beautiful “Run”. After 31 years and numerous lineup changes, Collective Soul has found the perfect lineup (including the inspired addition of Tristen Turpin on keys and vocals) and a comfort on stage which sees them playing some of the best shows and music of their career.
For many in the capacity crowd, this was the chance to see a major band on a small stage, for me, it was a full-circle moment. Since we were both in that room 31 years ago, we’ve experienced life’s ups and downs, people have come and gone before finding the right ones. Back then we wondered, “Have I got a long way to run?”, now we know it’s not as long of a run, but the journey has meant everything, and Collective Soul’s music has been there the whole time.
