5 Hours and 68 Songs in One Day
By Josh Bashara

It's no surprise that 311—one of the hardest working bands of the last decade—came out of the Midwest. Hell, it doesn't even surprise the band members themselves that their gung-ho attitude towards making music and touring is due in part to their Nebraska "working-boy" upbringing. Taking influences from The Clash, Bob Marley and The Smiths, 311 created a sweet fusion of rock, reggae and funk.

They've gone from high-school-jammers to Platinum-record-selling rock stars in a shorter amount of time than it takes most bands to land their first major-label record deal. Thanks to iron-clad perseverance and their old-school work ethic, 311 have earned a reputation as one of the best live bands in the country.

"I think the challenges associated with coming out of Omaha made us stronger as a unit," lead singer Nick Hexum says of the band's success. "It made us more appreciative of everything we've accomplished. From the start, we were told that bands from theMidwest couldn't make it. Especially a band from the Midwest playing a mix of rock, hip-hop and reggae. The odds were definitely against us. But we had that Midwestern work ethic and we just worked hard and carved out a niche for ourselves."

Almost perpetually on tour, 311 realized early on that touching people live in the flesh was the way to set themselves apart from the rest.

"We always knew that we'd have to play a lot of shows to prove to people we were for real," says bassist P-Nut.

"We just decided to tour and tour and tour," Hexum chimes in. "In the early 90s, radio wasn't interested in playing cross-genre bands, so we knew that we had to take our music to the people. The five of us shared a house in the valley but we toured so much that we decided to move out, put all of our things in a storage space and just live on the road.

"We kept up a pretty hectic pace for a lot of years and I guess we finally earned the right to slow down a bit. But we're still a touring band. More than anything, I think we're still known as a band that puts on a great live show." Quickly becoming an annual tradition is the "311 day" concert in New Orleans. Each year on March 11 (3-11), the band makes a pilgrimage to the Big Easy for a huge concert in front of thousands of rabid fans.

"I guess it started in 1999," Hexum says of the event. "We put on a big show in New Orleans and we played an extra-long set. And of course New Orleans is just the ultimate party town. It just grew from there. This year we played for five hours—68 songs! And honestly afterwards I was ready to run a marathon. There was so much adrenaline in that arena. I was just charged."

"Our crowd allowed us to play that long," P-Nut says in agreement. "They made it easy."

Such devotion to their fans begs the question, "Why?" Why spend half your life in a tour bus? Why keep getting up in the morning to make more music? Hexum says that It's all about returning the love that fans give him every day.

"Yesterday, I got a letter from a fan that's in the US military," he explains. "The letter came all the way from Iraq. For three pages [the fan] wrote about how much he appreciates our band and can't wait to check out another 311 concert. He never even mentioned the war or the hardships that he must be going through. He's over in Iraq and yet he still takes the time to write me a letter to tell me how much he appreciates 311. Stuff like that amazes me and definitely keeps us going. We have some incredible fans."

"There's no one thing that can keep you sane on the road," P-Nut admits. "But little can be more valuable than a good sense of humor and patience. And having good communication with your loved ones."

"I just love making music," Hexum adds. "Writing songs is definitely a passion for me. And I love being in a band with these guys. I think we have a unique chemistry and we challenge each other and that keeps things interesting. We're also constantly inspired by our fans. We feed off of their energy, excitement and positivity."

That chemistry has obviously equaled success; not many contemporary bands can boast U.S. record sales of over seven million, let alone a group that has stuck to their original recipe through thick and thin.

This spring, fans were treated to 311's crossover into the world of Hollywood when they got involved with Adam Sandler's "50 First Dates" movie. Producing five songs on the soundtrack, Hexum and Co. also covered The Cure's "Love Song" for the flick. Being big fans of The Cure, 311 were thrilled when Adam Sandler suggested they cover a song from one of their biggest influences. I've been a Cure fan for a long time," Hexum says, "so I thought it was a great idea.

When [guitarist] Tim [Mahoney] and I played in a cover band back in High School in Omaha, we actually covered a bunch of Cure songs. I haven't met Robert Smith, but Lol Tolhurst, the Cure's original drummer and keyboardist, actually came down to the set during the "Love Song" video shoot. We hung out a bit and he made a cameo appearance in the video (as the bartender). He said that he and Robert both really liked our version of the song."

The fun doesn't stop with 311's introduction to the silver screen, though. This summer fans will be treated to a greatest hits album, due out in June of 2004. The disc will be packed with 17 tracks total, two of which are brand new songs. This summer, 311 goes on tour once again in support of the album. Despite that the band just got off the road from a spring tour, they've committed themselves to a balls-out, high-energy romp through the country just to give fans a good time. As if all this wasn't enough, look for a live concert DVD out next Christmas. "I honestly think that our overall performance energy and execution is at an all-time peak right now," Hexum says. "We're just playing better than we ever have before. So I think this summer is just going to be an amazing musical adventure. I'm really looking forward to it."

www.311.com

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