It's hard not to see the title of
See What You Started by Continuing
as a bit of a jab at
Collective Soul
themselves. Twenty-two years and nine albums deep into their career, the alt-rock-era band has neither burned out nor faded away -- they've merely persisted, putting out records at a steady clip that only slowed in the 2010s, when they took six years to succeed 2009's
with this record. The delay may have been the result of some lineup rejiggering -- they have a different drummer in
Johnny Rabb
, and
Jesse Triplett
takes over the group's historically unsteady position of lead guitarist -- and the new members invigorate
Ed
and
Dean Roland
to return to their heavy, hooky roots. Most of the record pulsates to a fuzzy, primal beat, the lightness coming from the harmonies and melodies, the very things that have always been
's ace in the hole. Sometimes, they shake things up with a few old tricks -- the horns on "Am I Getting Through," a hint of gospel on "Without Me," a stately power ballad on "Memoirs of 2005" -- but the record is front-loaded with the kind of riffy rockers that always made the group a pleasure. Maybe it's a mere continuation, not a revival, but this heavy dose of straight-ahead hard rock makes
one of
's best records yet. [
See What You Started
was released digitally and on CD.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine