311 goes on tour

311 was formed in 1990 in Omaha, Nebraska by five self-described “friends for life” (singer/guitarist Nick Hexum, singer S.A. Martinez, guitarist Tim Mahoney, drummer Chad Sexton and the bassist known only as P-Nut).

311 signed with Capricorn Records in 1991. They released several albums, including 1992’s Music, 1993’s Grassroots, and 1995’s 311 (aka the “Blue” album), the latter reaching number 12 on the album chart, selling three million copies worldwide, and sporting the tracks “All Mixed Up” and “Down.”

In 2004, 311 decided to release a Greatest Hits compilation to celebrate being together for 15 years.

311 Day is a semiannual tradition that brings tons of fans to Las Vegas for this amazing concert. The concert took place this year at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas on March 11th, 2010. Currently, the band is on an East Coast Tour for the month of October starting in Birmingham, Alabama and ending in Raleigh North Carolina.

In my opinion, I think that people should listen to this band, because they create a happy medium between several different genres such as hip hop, alternative rock and punk. This band plays concerts world wide, attracting many different types of fans.

311 is a band that has gone virtually unnoticed for 10 years, but has still been very successful in their time.

311 at the Fillmore Tonight (Vibes - Music Blog)

311 A number of local acts make it their business to cover this band’s hits, but none is as good as the original. 311 continues to rock out on tour following its mid-’90s success with songs like “All Mixed Up” and “Down.” They’ll take the stage in the Q.C. to perform music that has enough guitar riffs to make you head-bang and beats funky enough for even the most dedicated hip-hop fiend. $67, The Fillmore Charlotte

Hexum and Co. still rock out pavilion (Cavilier)

“It’s good to be here! Let’s have some fun — what do you say?” shouted Nick Hexum — front man of 311 — after the band took the stage at the Charlottesville Pavilion last Sunday. Hexum never stopped thanking the audience during the show, which consistently delivered a performance that was both fun and musically satisfying.

Opening for 311 was BALLYHOO!, a band from Maryland whose musical genre was uncannily similar to that of 311: a mix of funk, rock, hip-hop and reggae. After a 40-minute set, BALLYHOO! left the stage, throwing CD cases and band paraphernalia as they went.

As 311’s crew set up during the long intermission, it was easy to reflect on how far the band has come since its humble beginnings in Omaha, Neb. There were more drums, switches and amps than could be counted, and the pavilion’s three areas — a lawn section, some tables and chairs and a front floor — were almost entirely filled with a wide variety of fans. Although the audience was made up of mostly college students and 20- to 30-somethings, there were a significant number of older attendees as well, in addition to some pre-teens and even the odd family.

When 311 finally took the stage a little after 8 p.m., the band walked on stage to spinning blue and white lights and a cheering crowd, then jumped straight into an energetic 90-minute set. Although the band’s summer tour and current fall tour highlight the group’s most recent album, Uplifter, they still played a wide variety from their catalog. Newer songs such as “Jackpot” and “Mix It Up” were interspersed with hits such as “Amber,” “From Chaos” and “Creatures (For a While).” Most of the songs showed the high-energy, rap-rock side of the band, but a few were slower and more experimental.

The show certainly showed passion and creativity, but there was still one thing missing: improvisation. There is certainly nothing wrong with a scripted live act — Lady Gaga comes to mind — but the band’s songs came so rapid-fire and were so lacking in grandeur and spontaneity that it almost seemed like the show was just a loud re-recording of their studio albums. Even the two-song encore felt scripted — the band only left the stage for two or three minutes and cranked out the final two songs in the same manner as the rest of the set.

That is not to say, however, that the show did not have its share of impressive moments. In the middle of “Applied Science,” for instance, all of the band members left the stage except for drummer Chad Sexton, who played an impressive six-minute drum solo. The other four musicians then rejoined him on stage with their own miniature drum sets for another four minutes of percussion-only music.
In similar fashion, bassist P-Nut remained on stage alone after “Beautiful Disaster” and played an extended bass solo. Later on, DJ/vocalist S. A. Martinez displayed his beat-boxing skills during “Purpose.” The remainder of the show followed the scripted, choreographed nature of the band’s studio albums, but the crowd remained thoroughly entertained from start to finish.

Omaha's Finest: 311 comes to Knoxville (Tennessee Journal)

By Peter Slutzker

published: October 27 2010 11:05 PM

Knoxville's Tennessee Theater hosted famous alternative rock group 311 for an incredible night filled with many great renditions of the songs that formed their unique musical style and loyal fan base. 

Compared to other setlists from previous tour dates, 311 played a great set which included many songs from different times in the group's existence including a couple of tracks off their lesser known first album, Music.

They also played many of the songs that gathered people across the nation's attention such as Down, All Mixed Up, Come Original, and Creatures.

With their Southern California vibes with heavy bass, reggae backbone and progressive riffs, 311's unique sound, while usually distorted to perfection, was extremely melodic and catchy.

The combination of the band’s energy, their great song choices, and the excellent acoustics of the Tennessee Theater, made for a great night for the gathered fans. One should definitely see this group live if the opportunity is presented because everybody in the audience was dancing and grooving and the band played their hearts out.

Every year on March 11, 311 plays a 3/11 day show that consists of a live performance of practically the group’s entire discography, usually playing for up to five hours. This event was captured on the DVD 311 Day: Live in New Orleans.
Though, the show here in Knoxville wasn’t a full discography’s worth of music, it was highly energetic, great fun and an amazing performance by a great band.

311 and Ballyhoo wrap up from Pier Six (Baltimore Examiner)

Nobody knows what to expect out of show crowds these days. Presales are going down across the nation, and Baltimore/D.C. is no different. So it was eery that just before Ballyhoo opened things up Pier Six remained sparsely filled. Ah, that didn't mean anything the minute Howi Spangler hit the stage with his guitar and beer, and led Ballyhoo into 50 minutes of energetic and finely tuned rock/reggae. The place immediately filled up, not quite to capacity, but encouraging nonetheless.

They were greeted warmly by the local throngs, nearly all of whom displayed enthusiastic support when urged by Spangler, "Make some noise out there if you know who we are." The response indicated Ballyhoo is rightly appreciated in their home town.

So with a strong turnout of 3500 properly warmed up, 311 took to the stage, spurring the crowd into stirring around, moving almost en masse as if collectively a liquid form, through the seats, up the aisles, and back out around the side again. And repeat. Fans wanting to get close to Nick Hexum got close time and again, only to be repelled by the all-business Pier Six security. (Note: why don't they just put in a barricade here? It would make things a lot easier for security and photographers alike.)

311's set was an hour and forty minutes long, and included their tried and true best material from earlier albums mixed with newer stuff from Uplifter (2009). All in all, they brought a solid set that pleased the crowd, but the heavier songs and sections sounded off, just so slightly. Melodic tunes like "Amber" were nearly pitch-perfect while songs like "Down" flattened out at the upper ranges, or so it seemed. The output didn't unsettle the fans, however, who remained right through to the final note.

All in all the show was a success for both bands. The nod goes to Ballyhoo, though, for the quality of their sound. Word has it they recently brought a new sound guy on board. If so, he has his act down.
311 continues on tour, visiting Knoxville, TN, tomorrow, then on to South Carolina, North Carolina and finishing up with their special Halloween show in Atlanta.

New Day Rising (Diamondback, Maryland)

When police mobilize on an indecent exposure call in Omaha, Neb., the police code for the situation is a "311." The very nature of being cited for this so-called crime — being caught, for instance, naked in a local pool — is in many ways the definition of the freewheeling undertones in a band like 311.
Since forming in 1988 and exploding onto the national scene in 1995, 311 has often been considered a quintessential band of the 1990s, with classic tracks such as "Down" and "All Mixed Up" still receiving radio play 15 years after their debuts.
Now out on yet another tour, 311 will come to Baltimore's Pier Six Pavilion tomorrow, ready to rock and roll.
If it wasn't obvious already, 311, which originated in Omaha, took on its name after some members of the band committed the act described above. Certainly not a group to be ashamed of themselves, the band took its three-digit title and the intense energy of its live show to the national stage and never looked back.
"We don't play huge venues all the time," bassist Aaron Wills, known as P-Nut, said. "When we do, it certainly is [nice]. It's nice to know that people still care about us. They wanna hear the new music, and they wanna hear the old music, and they wanna watch us play our instruments in the particular way we do. It's crazy; it's going all according to plan, and it's exceeded all expectations a thousand times over."
P-Nut — whose name is derived from a similarly strange story about the shape of his head — has been a member of 311 since the band's inception.
In the years he's spent with the group, P-Nut has been able to build a life for himself, even among the commotion of insistent touring.
The stereotypical life of a rocker — drugs, sex, parties, long days and longer nights — would seem to be detrimental to a man trying to build a family.
However, the repetitive and draining cycle of live shows experienced by P-Nut and the rest of 311 only seem to make his personal ties stronger.
"It's only proven how important it is," P-Nut said of relationships. "You really gotta choose your partner and your circle of friends real wisely because there's temptations and pitfalls and a lot of money going around and jealousy. It's a thick soup of intellectual pratfalls. You gotta have the right person with you. I've known my wife since 1993; we've lived together since 1995, so she's seen it all."
Now the father of a 7-week-old boy, P-Nut is excited about both his life and career.
As for the music of 311, the band, which is recording a new album for release sometime next year, still considers itself to be a perfect example of hybrid rock. Since the '90s, 311 has been playing everything from reggae to hard rock, even covering bands such as The Cure with 2004's "Love Song" for the 50 First Dates soundtrack.
Even with all the diversity of its sound, it seems fair to assume that 311's image would be fading after so many years on the music scene.
The music world is constantly reinventing itself, simmering down or demolishing the popularity of many artists. If nothing else, 311's biggest battle these days is figuring out how to stay relevant.
P-Nut, on the other hand, said the band's live energy and constantly expanding catalogue keep new fans coming and old fans coming back.
"At least in the first eight or 10 or 12 rows are a perpetually college-aged crowd, or maybe even younger — older high school kids just going to their first shows, getting a little taste of freedom and some money in their pockets," P-Nut said. "I think that's one of the things that's kept us along is that we do have a certain amount of excitement and energy level that makes it easy for college kids to have a great time at our shows. We are kinda perpetually stuck in that ourselves. We wanna rock out."
To 311, the live show is as much of a mental task as it is a physical task. The band has often written songs about more worldly subjects than most groups' normal fare.
As P-Nut describes it, a person with a big voice, such as 311 and its microphones, should use it to talk about issues that might otherwise get only one-sided activism.
For P-Nut and 311, the decriminalization of marijuana has become an important issue, which is understandable considering the band's position with youth and counterculture.
"I don't think anyone can really defend that it is better to arrest stoners than not," P-Nut said. "It's tying up our legal system; it's costing penitentiaries space for actual criminals. It's an important thing to talk about; the tides are starting to turn. We got 14 states doing medical marijuana, and when I get back home to California, I'm gonna vote to decriminalize marijuana across the board. ... It's such a stupid law. People need to be educated more than they need to be incarcerated."
Regardless of political positions, it is 311's music that keeps the band thriving.
With one beautiful disaster after another, 311 hopes to keep bringing its raucous live show year after year, venue after venue, for as long as anyone cares to see them.

Sucess adds up for 311 (Stroudsburg Weekender)

You could call the history of 311 a story in numbers. Six albums that made it into Billboard’s Top 10. More than 14,000 fans coming out to shows in major markets like Los Angeles, Atlanta, Boston and Washington, D.C. Sixty-three songs during a 5-hour performance in 2008 at the annual 3-11 Day.
Another important 311 numeral is 20, as in the number of years the hybrid alternative rock/reggae/hip-hop band has been recording and touring.
“It’s weird, because after 20 years, we’re kind of on our second wind,” says 311 lead guitarist Tim Mahoney, taking a break from the band’s sessions for a new album at its North Hollywood studio, The Hive. “Holy shit, we’ve been doing this so long. I think for me, personally, I always want to write better and play better and execute better. So it’s a challenge. I think everybody (in the band) has kind of had that approach.”
311 formed in Omaha, Nebraska, before exploding into the mainstream with its third album, the 1995 self-titled release that featured the hits “Down” and “All Mixed Up.” Despite the fading of alt rock’s glory days, 311 has managed to stay popular, turning a 2004 cover of The Cure’s “Love Song” into a radio mainstay and launching its well-attended Summer Unity tours in 2006.
On Wednesday, October 20, 311 — vocalist/guitarist Nick Hexum, vocalist/DJ S.A. Martinez, bassist P-Nut, drummer Chad Sexton and Mahoney — will perform at the Sherman Theater in Stroudsburg, the smallest venue on the band’s fall tour. After speaking with Mahoney, it seems like both diehard fans and more peripheral listeners only familiar with 311’s hits should be pleased with what they hear in Stroudsburg.
“Now, we soundcheck a couple songs, maybe songs that weren’t played in a while,” Mahoney says. “We try to incorporate variety. Some want to hear B tracks, some only know radio songs. A song like ‘Down,’ which is like a ‘thank you’ song anyway, we probably play that every night.”
311 is again working with Bob Rock, whose production resume includes Metallica’s self-titled “black” album and Motley Crue’s “Dr. Feelgood.” The band first worked with Rock on “Uplifter,” its most recent album which was released in 2009. With introductions out of the way and Rock and the band now accustomed to working with each other, both parties were able to get straight to business this time around. At the time of the interview, Mahoney said 311 and Rock were in the preproduction stage.
“He’s great,” says Mahoney. “I can’t say enough nice things about him, his work ethic. We just learned so much about him and had a great experience with him on ‘Uplifter.’”
The band has yet to set a release date for the new album.
The fact that 311 made its big early commercial mark while MTV was still playing music videos and record labels were thriving is not lost on Mahoney, who is grateful for the timing of the whole thing.
“Oh man, definitely,” he says, laughing. “The reason why I laugh is because we got in at the very tail end of it, when a band like us could sell three million records. The blue record (‘311’), had we not sold a bunch of records, I wouldn’t have been able to put a down payment on my house.”
311 considers a 1990 opening slot for Fugazi at Omaha’s Sokol Auditorium to be its first-ever show. Mahoney, who went to high school with Hexum and Sexton, wasn’t yet a member of the band, but he was at the show — to see Fugazi — and didn’t see 311’s set. After some lineup shifts, Mahoney, and later Martinez, who had been collaborating with the band, joined 311.
Pinning down the 311 sound is a difficult proposition. But the diverse influences Mahoney cites in his guitar playing might shed some light: Jimmy Page, Dr. Know from Bad Brains, John Scofield, Jeff Beck, John McLaughlin — “probably the best player on the planet,” Mahoney says — Dimebag Darrell, Jamaican reggae artist Ernest Ranglin, the band Nashville Pussy and Phish’s Trey Anastasio, whom Mahoney says he listens to every day.
Despite the continued chart success, 311 makes most of its money from touring, and the band spices up its schedule with special events, like 3-11 Day in New Orleans. About a week after the Sherman Theater show, 311 will play its “Music” album, a fan favorite from 1993, in its entirety during a show at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta. It’s a way for 311 to further a relationship with its audience, a relationship that is as strong as it’s ever been.
“I think we’re fortunate that our fans will follow us as far as what we do and we write and come out and see us play,” says Mahoney. “That’s how we make our living.”