What a difference five years makes. Back in 1994, Collective Soul was little more than a ragtag outfit piecedtogether by singer/songwriter/guitarist Ed Roland. After an earlier line-up ofthe group disintegrated, Roland was forced to draft his brother and some of theirStockbridge, Georgia chums into a new version of Collective Soul when some ofRoland's demos landed "the band" a record deal.A few months later, one of those demos, "Shine," was all over alternative radio,and the song's post-grunge guitar drive and accessibly spiritual themes helped itbecome one of the most popular singles of that summer.On the strength of "Shine" and Collective Soul's debut record, "Hints,Allegations and Things Left Unsaid," the group landed a high-profile gig atWoodstock II in Saugerties, New York, where the fledgling band rubbed shoulderswith the likes of Bob Dylan, Metallica, Peter Gabriel, and the Red Hot ChiliPeppers.Since then, Collective Soul has rattled off a string of singles ("December,""Gel," "The World I Know") and albums that have helped it become one of the mostpopular (and consistent) rock groups around, even as the band's earnestness hasdrawn the derision of some high-brow critics.On its new album, "Dosage," Collective Soul seems to have come full circle fromits makeshift origins. Now Ed Roland, his brother and guitarist Dean, guitaristRoss Childress, bassist Will Turpin, and drummer Shane Evans sound as if theyhave truly evolved into a band, with each having contributed to themulti-textured feel of the record's first two singles, "Run" and "Heavy."MTV recently caught up with Roland and Childress a few days into CollectiveSoul's current U.S. tour, and the two talked about the behind-the-scenes turmoilof the group's last record ("Disciplined Breakdown"), the experimental tone ofthe new album, and the band's thoughts on returning for the third edition ofWoodstock, slated for this summer in Rome, New York.
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