Collective Soul set to play Rose Music Center Sept. 11

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By Jim Davis

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HUBER HEIGHTS — Dean Roland missed a lot of things when the pandemic brought live musical shows to a halt. But it took being back out on the road for the veteran Collective Soul guitarist to put it in perspective.

“I missed my bandmates,” he said during a recent phone interview. “But then the other thing is, I realized I missed those few minutes leading up to the beginning of the show and stepping into that zone — that anticipation of it.”

After plugging in for a handful of shows this summer, Roland said it’s all coming back. The band is back together, fans are in the audience and things are starting to feel … well, normal.

“Our first show was in Atlanta … then we did a run with our buddies from Styx,” he said. “It feels like its beginning to get a little bit back to normal.”

Even if it took a few shows to get back in the groove.

“A few shows back when we started getting going again, I looked at my brother (Ed Roland) and said, ‘What is this strange feeling?’ And I thought, ‘Oh, I’m nervous.’”

The odd moment caught him off-guard … “But it ended up being fun.”

Roland and his Collective Soul bandmates will bring their Just Looking Around 2021 Tour to Huber Heights for a Sept. 11 show at Rose Music Center at the Heights. Better than Ezra and Tonic round out the lineup for the 7 p.m. concert.

With multiple hits from the three bands’ musical resumes, Roland said he hopes fans connect with the music and feel the same passion he and his bandmates do.

“If I’m honest, I think it’s a bunch of great songs. Kevin (Griffin from BTE) and Emerson (Hart from Tonic) and my brother (Ed) — there’s a lot of richness in the songwriting,” he said. “You’re going to have a bunch of earworms by the end of the night. And I think for us, it’s like really sharing the joy of what we love to do. We love getting on stage and playing music. Hop on the train with us and go have a good time.”

Formed in 1992, Collective Soul features the Roland brothers — Ed on lead vocals and Dean on rhythm guitar — as well as Jesse Triplett (lead guitar), Johnny Rabb (drums) and Will Turpin (bass).

The band racked up multiple hits throughout the 90s — from “Shine,” “Precious Declaration” and “December” to “The World I Know,” “Where the River Flows” and “Heavy.”

Those songs continue to be a big part of Collective Soul shows 25 years later.

“We take a lot of pride in (that longevity), and we’re grateful for it,” he said.

When the band formed, Roland said there was no way of knowing they’d still be rocking a quarter century later.

“I remember seeing a U2 show when I was 15, and Ed went to see Elton (John). There was that feeling … ‘I want to be a part of whatever that is,” he remembered. “You start out on the endeavor of ‘this feels good.’ You don’t know how its’ going to turn out, so you’re just grateful. There’s going to be obstacles like anything in life, but we just love it and keep going and want to see what’s just around the corner.”

Roland said he hopes that love of music is evident when they play at The Rose.

“I hope (fans) can escape for a minute. We all have heavy (stuff) in our lives,” he said. “Hopefully — in those two hours — you can slip away and enjoy the beauty of what music is.”

And maybe even feel a bit “normal” again.

To learn more about Collective Soul, visit the band’s website at collectivesoul.com. Ticket information can be found at rosemusiccenter.com.

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