By Laura Medina
Gen-X ska/punk/reggae/rock band, 311, hit the ground running, blasting it at The Hollywood Palladium, this last Saturday.
This is no more tease. This was a full-on two hour rock concert, a blasting launch for their new upcoming tour for their newest album release, MOSAIC.
Even before the concert, MOSAIC, just released on BMG--debuted at #6 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums Chart which marks the multi-platinum group's 10th consecutive Top 10 Album on the chart. Streams of the group's new album, MOSAIC , approached 10 million since its late June release.
In the twenty-seven years together, this Gen-X band, 311, is on it's way of becoming Millennials' own idea of their own "Rolling Stones," a classic no-fault rock n' roll band.
A wide-ranging of die-hard loyal 311 fans were hungry for 311's newest and latest releases from their brand new, MOSAIC.
The jam-packed, respectful audience swayed to their latest release, "Too Much to Think," https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-8hSpJOAyo, a meditative song with their signature ska-reggae rock. 311 represents the golden of the Nineties, when everybody was open-minded to anything, as long it's good and people happy mashed-up and adaptive musical forms because it was fun and cool. You can still feel that "love" at last Saturday's 311 concert.
311 took Nineties' Gen-X angst then fuel it into positive energy that's still driving them in 2010s, in a career that last 27 year, making them rock classics.
Like the Baby Boomers' Rolling Stones, Frontman Nick Hexum said being in the band is like being in a marriage, to NPR's "All Things Considered" Lakshmi Singh , http://www.wnyc.org/story/311s-nick-hexum-after-3-decades-its-all-about-the-fans/
Another key to their long-term success, they found out what's new and good, adapt to it while sticking to their ska/punk rock roots.
Nick Hexum, "Really, it was just keeping an eye towards [the idea that] anything that was weird is good. Anything that is new, anything that is fresh — those are the ideas that we pursued. And also just mixing up the process: Instead of being in our own little bubble, we asked other people into the room with us to record. ... I think that's an exercise in remaining teachable and being humble — to realize that you can learn from others. And I think that's the biggest block that an artist of our age can have, is when you don't reach out, you don't keep mixing it up and bringing new people in, because your ego makes you feel like you can't accept help." http://www.wnyc.org/story/311s-nick-hexum-after-3-decades-its-all-about-the-fans/
Leading up and warming up to last Saturday's 311's Hollywood Palladium concert, fans of all ethnicities, backgrounds, and all ages, from rocking Boomers to starry-eyed Millennials to die-hard loyal Gen-Xers, they were all talking about 311's Caribbean Cruises while vaping on 311's Grassroots Uplifter, http://www.grassrootsuplifter.com/
What makes 311 cool, starting off with their Nineties' base of mixing and incorporating ska/reggae/punk into their unique blend of rock to evolving and adapting to their fans' taste and lifestyle into profitable side line businesses to boost their bottom line, gluing stronger to their fans, and add more years to their longevity...
"311's Nick Hexum: After 3 Decades, It's All About The Fans," "311 has its own Caribbean cruise, http://www.311cruise.com/home/ where fans can revel in a sea of fellow die-hards. It's got its own cannabis product, a vape pen aptly called the Grassroots Uplifter. And the band even has an unofficial holiday: Legions of devout followers celebrate March 11 (yes, that's 3/11) every two years by making a pilgrimage to a designated site for a special 311 concert that can go on for hours." http://www.wnyc.org/story/311s-nick-hexum-after-3-decades-its-all-about-the-fans/
The majority of the two hours consisted for 311 belting new "Mosaic" materials, which is a full blast of their upcoming concert, starting October 7th in Irvine's FivePoint Amphitheater then ending on November 4th at Tampa's Cuban Club. Here's their full touring schedule for this Fall 2017: http://www.311.com/shows/
DATE
|
LOCATION
|
VENUE
| |
SUN
|
10/7
|
Irvine, CA
|
FivePoint Amphitheater
|
FRI
|
10/12
|
St Paul, MN
|
The Myth
|
SUN
|
10/14
|
Chicago, IL
|
Octoberfest at Petrillo Band Shell
|
MON
|
10/15
|
Madison, WI
|
Orpheum Theater
|
TUE
|
10/16
|
Sioux Falls, SD
|
The District
|
THU
|
10/18
|
Cedar Rapids, IA
|
Club 5 at US Cellular Center
|
FRI
|
10/19
|
Grand Rapids, MI
|
20 Monroe Live
|
SAT
|
10/20
|
Louisville, KY
|
Mercury Ballroom
|
MON
|
10/22
|
Cincinnati, OH
|
Bogarts
|
TUE
|
10/23
|
Nashville, TN
|
Marathon Music Works
|
WED
|
10/24
|
Knoxville, TN
|
The Mill and the Mine
|
FRI
|
10/26
|
Bethlehem, PA
|
Sands Bethlehem Event Center
|
SAT
|
10/27
|
Providence, RI
|
The Strand (formerly Lupo's)
|
SUN
|
10/28
|
Montclair, NJ
|
The Wellmont Theater
|
TUE
|
10/30
|
Port Chester, NY
|
The Capitol Theatre
|
WED
|
10/31
|
Huntington, NY
|
Halloween at The Paramount
|
FRI
|
11/2
|
Baltimore, MD
|
Rams Head Live!
|
SAT
|
11/3
|
Athens, GA
|
Georgia Theatre
|
SUN
|
11/4
|
Tampa, FL
|
Cuban Club
|
Since 311 has it's very own unofficial holiday, 311 will celebrate their holiday, "311 DAY 2018 with fans, in Las Vegas' Park Theater at Monte Carlo on Saturday, March 10 and Sunday, March 11 of next year, March 10th to 11th, 2018.
March 11 (aka 3/11 or "311 Day") is a holiday to 311 fans everywhere. Every other year since year 2000, 311 play an arena show on March 11 that attracts 311's biggest fans from around the world--who come together to celebrate the band, their music and the 311 community. The special show includes an extended set list and state-of-the-art production. 311 Day typically attracts over 10,000 fans from all 50 U.S. States & 15+ countries. After the past two years in New Orleans, 311 DAY 2018 returns to Las Vegas for two weekend nights at Monte Carlo's Park Theater, a brand new 5,700 capacity venue with state-of-the-art sound, lights & production. The venue is half the size of the most recent 311 DAY arena shows making it an intimate and immersive concertexperience from any seat in the house.
Fans and new admirers can get a jumpstart by buying tickets on August 29th, with the official on-sale starting August 31 on http://www.311.com/311day2018/
Another key building block in the band's tumescence.
311 saved the best for last. They played oldies but goodies, "Down" and "Amber," the songs that got their start way back in the mid-Nineties.
What's even cooler, 311 are currently making plans for the next video for "'Til The City's On Fire" from MOSAIC. In the spirit of the MOSAIC album cover, where their 12th album cover is composed of an image of the band made up of close to 10,000 photos taken with and submitted by fans, the band is calling out to their fans asking them to submit a video of themselves singing (or lip-synching) the lyrics to the song for a chance to be featured in its official video. For all details visit: http://www.311fanvideo.com.
Paraphrasing Nick Hexum, " the cover and album title speak to the "collective nature" of 311 and "the bond between the band members and our fans."
Through the years with a growing loyal fan base, 311 kept what was best about the Nineties, going full-tilt boogie, finding out what's cool then mixing it in, and being all inclusive regardless of age, race, background, and generation, while adapting to their audience's evolving change and lifestyle and wallet.
Rock on 311!
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