It's not very often that I get totally blown away by a music album these days. I don't even like much music these days, and even the stuff I find mildly appealing doesn't make much of an impression on me. Collective Soul, on the other hand, has been one of my favorite "new" (I loosely use that term for anything from the last 15 or so years) bands since their first album, but I haven't followed them much for the last few years. When I saw this album, however, and saw that it was live (I've seen some of the biggest bands in history live, and none of them had ANYTHING on CS in terms of pure energy) I decided to pick it up. The result was one of the best listening experiences I've had in a very long time-I listened to it over and over and over again, and still wasn't satisfied.
First of all, CS is a phenomenal band live. The band packs so much energy and is so talented, and Ed Roland's spectacular voice holds up very well live, unlike some other bands. This 2 disc set also features the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra, which adds rather than detracts from the performance and at times seems almost a part of the band. This CD is just like their live shows-not much idle chatter, no theatrics, just pure, energetic rock and roll at its finest.