311 (band)
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."The Blue Album"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.311's latest album
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.