|
311 Information
|
|
'311' (pronounced "three eleven") is a band that formed in late 1988 in Omaha, Nebraska as a rapcore/punk rock/reggae group.
The members of 311 are Nick Hexum (lead vocals, guitar), Douglas Vincent "SA" Martinez (vocals, turntable, programming), Aaron Wills (a.k.a. P-Nut) (bass), Tim Mahoney (a.k.a. miT) (lead guitar), and Chad Sexton (drums). All five of the members grew up in Omaha in the 1970s.
Musical Career
Early 311 (1990-95)
In 1990 and 1991, 311 released three records on their own independent record label, What Have You Records. These records, titled Dammit!, Hydroponic, and Unity, and alongside their energetic live shows, launched their career in the mid-west, after which they moved out to California in an attempt to be signed onto a major record label.
Their first CD, Music was released in 1993 and eventually went gold. The following year, they released their second album, Grassroots. Their biggest selling CD was their self-titled release 311 in 1995 (also known as The Blue Album) which went triple-platinum, and also found mainstream success with the singles "Down" and "All Mixed Up".
Mainstream Breakthrough (1996-2000)
In the following years, 311 kept their strong radio success going. 1997's Transistor debuted at number 4 on Billboard Album Charts. Transistor is known as a fan-favorite throughout the 311 community and sports popular tracks such as "Beautiful Disaster", "Transistor", and "Prisoner".
In 1999, 311 released their fifth major album titled Soundsystem. "Come Original" was the album's first single and had huge success on radio and telvision. It appeared on MTV's TRL eight times in late 1999, and was number 60 on TRL's Top 99 of '99. The second single, "Flowing," had American Pie's Eddie Kaye Thomas featured in the music video. Although it is critically known as one of 311's best songs to date, it didn't achieve the same success "Come Original" did.
Later Albums (2001-present)
From Chaos, 311's sixth major record release, debuted at number 10 on Billboard Album Charts in late 2001. "You Wouldn't Believe" featured basketball star Shaquille O'Neal in the video and it had solid success on MTV. The album is mostly known for the third single, "Amber". The song reached out to a new crowd, different from the usual fanbase. 2003's Evolver was a very different direction for 311, and fans' overall opinion of the album was split. "Creatures (For A While)" reached as high as number 3 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart. "Beyond The Gray Sky" and "Sometimes Jacks Rule The Realm" were also known as album highpoints.
In 2004, 311 covered "Love Song", originally recorded by The Cure, which became a number one hit. It was featured on the soundtrack for the motion picture 50 First Dates, and then a few months later on their own Greatest Hits compilation. Also that year, 311 played a 68-song setlist during their concert on "311 Day", which the band has held in New Orleans every other year since 2000. "311 Day" occurs on March 11 (i.e. the third month of the year, eleventh day). The next 311 Day is to occur in 2006, but following the destruction of Hurricane Katrina, it is currently unknown whether it will still be able to take place in New Orleans.
On August 16th, 2005, 311 released their eighth studio album, titled Don't Tread on Me. "Don't Tread On Me," the first single, got as high as number 2 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts and number 1 at R&R. The video achieved massive success on Fuse, MTV and VH1. The next single is titled "Speak Easy". With a hook similar to such hits as "Amber" and "Love Song", success may be seen in the near future.
Aside from their currently released albums, the band has created three well documented videos (Enlarged to Show Detail, Enlarged to Show Detail 2, and 311 Day: Live in New Orleans) of their touring, friendship, positive messages, and of course, music.
Controversy
Claims of Racism
In 1997, a rumor started that the band's name was a reference to the Ku Klux Klan because K is the 11th letter of the alphabet. Although the number 311 is used by some white supremacists as a reference to the Ku Klux Klan, the band denies using such a reference and says that it was taken from the number of an Omaha police citation for indecent exposure.
In response to the rumors, Nick Hexum began to write a song for the album Transistor titled "F*** the KKK". He revised the song though, and it ended up as the sixth(NOT seventh like previously stated)track on the album titled "Electricity".
311 vs. Scott Stapp
On Thanksgiving Day, 2005, Martinez and Sexton were involved in a bar fight with former Creed lead singer Scott Stapp in Baltimore, Maryland. Martinez told MTV, "He was acting out of control, looking for attention and being loud and obnoxious. He walked up to the bar, took a shot of whiskey and then slammed the shot glass down on the bar, and it shattered everywhere.
"He said some disrespectful things towards my wife and I asked him what he said, and then Chad came over and said, 'Don't talk to her that way,' and Scott got up and Chad followed him. After a while he went back to the bar and was looking for attention. And then a few minutes later, he came back to the table where my wife was, sat down across from us and wanted attention, he started the fight, then the police arrived, escorted Scott to his room and then told him to get out of the hotel."
A spokesperson for Stapp did not return MTV News' requests for comment on the altercation. According to the Baltimore police department, no charges have been filed.
Discography
Albums
| Year | Title | Label | US Peak |
|---|
| 1988 | Downstairs EP | Self-released | DNC* | | 1989 | Dammit | What Have You | DNC* | | 1990 | Unity | What Have You | DNC* | | 1991 | Hydroponic | What Have You | DNC* | | 1993 | Music | Polygram | DNC* | | 1994 | Grassroots | Polygram | #193 | | 1995 | 311 (a.k.a. The Blue Album) | Capricorn | #12 | | 1997 | Transistor | Capricorn | #4 | | 1998 | Live | Capricorn | #77 | | 1998 | Omaha Sessions | What Have You | DNC* | | 1999 | Soundsystem | Capricorn | #9 | | 2001 | From Chaos | Volcano | #10 | | 2003 | Evolver | Volcano | #7 | | 2004 | Greatest Hits '93-'03 | Volcano | #7 | | 2005 | Don't Tread on Me | Volcano | #5 |
Singles
| 1993 | "Do You Right" | - | #20 | - | Music | | 1994 | "Lucky" | - | - | - | Grassroots | | 1994 | "Homebrew" | - | - | - | Grassroots | | 1995 | "8:16 A.M." | - | - | - | Grassroots | | 1996 | "Don't Stay Home" | - | #21 | - | 311 | | 1996 | "Down" | #'1' | #'1' | - | 311 | | 1996 | "All Mixed Up" | - | #2 | - | 311 | | 1997 | "Transistor" | - | #14 | #31 | Transistor | | 1997 | "Prisoner" | - | #21 | - | Transistor | | 1998 | "Beautiful Disaster" | - | #21 | - | Transistor | | 1999 | "Come Original" | - | #6 | #39 | Soundsystem | | 2000 | "Flowing" | - | #17 | - | Soundsystem | | 2001 | "Large in the Margin" | - | - | - | Soundsystem | | 2001 | "You Wouldn't Believe" | - | #7 | #32 | From Chaos | | 2001 | "I'll Be Here Awhile" | - | #15 | - | From Chaos | | 2002 | "Amber" | - | #13 | - | From Chaos | | 2003 | "Creatures (For a While)" | - | #3 | - | Evolver | | 2004 | "Beyond the Gray Sky" | - | #34 | - | Evolver | | 2004 | "Love Song" | #59 | #'1' | - | 50 First Dates [Soundtrack] | | 2004 | "First Straw" | - | #14 | - | Greatest Hits '93-'03 | | 2005 | "Don't Tread on Me" | #88 | #'1' | - | Don't Tread on Me | | 2005 | "Speak Easy" | - | #33 | - | Don't Tread on Me |
Filmography
| Year | Title | Format |
|---|
| 1996 | Enlarged to Show Detail | VHS/DVD | | 2001 | Enlarged to Show Detail 2 | VHS/DVD | | 2004 | 311 Day: Live in New Orleans | DVD |
|
|
