When he officially joined up with 311 back in 1992, vocalist S.A. Martinez never imagined he still would be at it 18 years later. At the time, the band was touring around in an old RV borrowed from one of the guy’s dads.
“We had no idea how far this would take us. I don’t think anyone saw further ahead than six months,” Martinez said via telephone from Pittsburgh on Tuesday. “We have a lot of history. We’ve had a lot of good fortune along the way.”
Things definitely picked up after 311 moved from its native Omaha to Los Angeles and got signed to Capricorn Records. In 1995, the hits started coming: “Down,” “All Mixed Up,” “Amber,” “Come Original,” “Creatures (For Awhile),” “Don’t Tread On Me” and a version of The Cure’s “Love Song.”
Happily for fans and band members alike, 311, whose sound blends rock, rap. punk, ska, metal and reggae, never stopped recording or touring. “Uplifter,” the band’s ninth studio album, was released last June and debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard Top 200, 311’s highest chart position to date. The band just launched its Unity tour, which will arrive Wednesday at Cleveland’s Time Warner Cable Amphitheatre.
Q. You guys just keep coming around, always playing large venues. You must have a loyal fan base.
A. We’re extremely lucky and fortunate. We’ve basically been doing shed (outdoor venue) tours every summer for the past 13 years. We keep going out and they keep coming. We’re blessed in that regard. We have a great live show and our band really connects with the crowd. A lot of our fans have grown up with us.
Q. Is the crazy touring tougher to pull off as you get older?
A. For our age, we rock it out! But yes, the number of shows we do back to back without a day off has dwindled. Back in the day, we could do six or seven in a row, no problem. Now three is the max. More days are peppered in there. More naps. (Laughs)
Q. Have you played everywhere by now?
A. We just played Alaska, the last state of the union we hadn’t played before. And we played this past spring in Guam and Jakarta. We went back to Japan. It’s been a dream come true, and it continues to unfold.
Q. What’s it like doing the summer shows?
A. Nothing beats playing outdoors in the summertime. It’s the best time of the year and we get the best reception. People have been cooped up all winter. Definitely a party atmosphere.
Q. What kind of people are coming to 311 shows these days?
A. We have generations now! We have the older crowd that’s been with us, and a lot of young kids that are just getting turned on to us. It’s really interesting and unique to see that happening. We don’t know the trends. We are sort of an anomaly in the business. We’re not crazy mainstream, we’ve got a somewhat underground mystique about us.
Q. I just read about your annual 311 Day (March 11) shows. Tell me about this year’s.
A. This year we had it in Las Vegas. We did close to five hours total of a show, three sets with this mini reggae-dub set in the middle. We had people there from all 50 states and 12 countries around the world. Our fans take over, and the show is really the icing on the cake.
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