Hip-hop alt-rock funkers 311 spent
years perfecting their unique brand of "new school music" for live
audiences before their hit "Down" captivated the collective ear of
alternative radio programmers in 1996. This band of Omaha, Nebraska
expatriates blazed a slow and steady trail on the live touring circuit
in support of their eponymous major-label debut, which ultimately paid
off in mega-chart success and paved the way for their 1997 follow-up
Transistor. LAUNCH executive editor Dave DiMartino caught up with
311's lead singer Nicholas Hexum, bassist P-Nut and drummer Chad Sexton
just as the album 311 started to take off.
LAUNCH:
Describe the music of 311 for me.
NICK:
To really accurately describe us you have to say five words:
Reggae, rock, hip-hop, jazz and funk, you know? And that still might be
leaving some out. We've had different little terms like, a long time ago
we called it "new school music," just like the "new school of thought"
being that you can put anything in your music; we're not
traditionalists, not strict. Whatever we like will come out in our
writing. Chad coined "rap style rock," which kind of applies.
P-NUT:
People should just liquidate all the extra adjectives on our
name and what we do--we're a rock band. Just listen. It's a rock-based
thing. That's where it starts from. It goes in many different
directions. Don't call us an alternative band, call us THE alternative
band.
LAUNCH:
Your first big record, 311, had been out for a pretty
long time before it finally caught on. What made it cross the line?
CHAD:
Number one, I think our merger with Mercury was a good
positive thing; it's done a lot of good things for us. Number two, we
weren't that commercial to begin with; you couldn't fit us easily into
any radio category. I don't want to say people--radio
programmers--finally caught up with us, but I think it was just a
different style of music that everyone had to get used to. I think that
had something to do with it.
NICK:
I really don't think that we have made any giant steps
forward. It's just a constant process. We've been making hard rock mixed
with dancehall, hip hop, reggae and jazz since 1991. Our approach hasn't
changed, but we had a feeling on "Down" that... I mean, we had good
songs, but we didn't just love them and love to play them live
like we did with "Down." That was the first song that had a chance of
getting on the radio, had a hook, but was also really rocking and we
loved to play. We had a good feeling about that song. It was about
time.
P-NUT:
Before, what was happening was just us. Now we're getting
lots of support from many different angles and it's helping us create
better and bigger. We've proven ourselves out on the road and that's why
the support has come. With that solid base, a fan base, we can pull a
thousand people wherever we go. Radio has to support that. The kids
know, and then radio, MTV and BLAMMO!
LAUNCH:
Tell me about breaking out of Omaha. It's not really known
as a music industry hub.
CHAD:
Well, when we left it was your basic alternative, like Hootie & The Blowfish. Omaha is a real basic city, very conservative.
Probably about 600,000 people. It was a good place to grow up, but I
don't miss it.
NICK:
Omaha is real divided in terms of the supporters and
detractors of 311. Some people are really proud that someone is putting
Omaha on the map. So there are those who are supportive and then those
who aren't; there's been so many incorrect rumors, people love to spread
nasty things. When we play shows, there's usually a good vibe there, but
numbers-wise--even for a town of that size--it's not one of our top
markets at all. But we're all tight with our family and friends
there.
LAUNCH:
Are you experimenting with new sounds for your next album?
How would you describe the sound you'll be going for in the future?
NICK:
When people ask me about the next album, I say "outer space
dub music." It will be similar to 311, but we're getting into more
trippy production, trying to change the vocabulary. There's still gonna
be songs, melodies, probably more melodies than in the past, but the way
we'll state it will be with different arrangements--we'll expand on the
instruments we use. There will be more keyboards, samples, stuff like
that.
CHAD:
For our next album, "future space music." I would call it
that. As for the past, or what we're about, it's just a blending of
styles of music: Funk and rock. Advanced space music. Something like
that.
LAUNCH:
Have you chosen a producer for the next release? Or will you
be producing the album yourselves?
NICK:
We've just had a great experience working with our soundman
who engineered our last three records, and he runs our sound live. He
knows us inside and out. He's a young guy like ourselves and he's really
excited about producing a major record. And so I think we're going to
give him a shot. Scott Roston will co-produce with us. We're not a band
that uses a lot of production anyway. In hip-hop, production means
writing the song. The rapper has the lyrics and the producer will write
the music. We pretty much know exactly what we want to do, and have the
production ideas. The producer, in our case, just oversees and makes
suggestions. Some producers play instruments, arrange vocals, etc. We
have that down already.
LAUNCH:
Now, you guys are known for playing a ton of live gigs. Do
you favor playing before an audience or do you prefer going into the
studio where you have more control over the musical output?
CHAD:
We are not to where I'd like to be represented on record yet.
I think there's just something about a live show, the energy--you can
just visually see it or something. It's way more appealing to me. It's
hard to make that on a recording, but we're getting closer and closer
definitely.
P-NUT:
The distinction between the two, as far as what I do in my
job as a musician--that being playing live and recording albums--they
are completely different. I like them both; it rounds out the whole
career. I'm more comfortable playing live shows, we've done it 400
times, but we've only been in the studio maybe 10 times. We have so much
more practice doing live shows that that's where I feel more
comfortable. Doing the studio, each time, you learn that much more, and
since it's rare, you want to soak it all in. That's the difference.
How's that?
LAUNCH:
Being on the road all the time, you guys must get sick of
each other. How do you deal with it?
P-NUT:
It happens; it happens rarely, but it does happen. It
happened a lot more when we would got out on tour for seven months.
Living in a metal tube, going through the routine, sharing that space.
Doing it that long stresses out the relationship. Now, we're doing six
weeks on, six weeks off, and that's good for the head.
LAUNCH:
You spend a lot of time in the summer playing the festival
circuit. How do you like that vibe?
P-NUT:
I really like festivals because you play with bands you
wouldn't normally tour with. You just hook up with them, and everybody's
cool. I'd like to say that most of the musicians we run into on those
things are pretty nice. There's not a lot of assholes being egomaniacs.
We're all musicians, we all get along.
LAUNCH:
What's the greatest gig 311 has played to date?
NICK:
I remember our debut gig opening for Fugazi in Omaha being
really triumphant. Just because I'd never played for a moshing crowd
before, and we really wanted to come out strong. It was such a great
opportunity for a young band to open for a punk rock hero. That was a
great night. Also the Sandstone show in Kansas City was just so perfect;
it was a great experience from start to finish. Just to see an ocean of
people, way back, like little specks, but you could still see them
bouncing. With their hands in the air. It was really cool.
P-NUT:
I would say the band's best gig would probably be a tie
between Sandstone Amphitheater in Kansas City, the Red Rocks show in
Denver and the Omni Show in Atlanta. Those were all three of the biggest
shows we'd done on our own, and the fans in all those cities were
amazing and gave us great support.
LAUNCH:
What's the worst, most hellish gig you've ever played?
P-NUT:
I kicked a girl once on stage and she was pretty mad. Nobody
caught her. That was probably the worst thing I ever did, and I knew
her, which makes it even worse. If it had been some anonymous person,
you know, you can just walk away, but she was like, "Why'd you do that
to me?" I felt really bad.
CHAD:
One time P-Nut threw up. I'm not sure what show that was, but
it was just over, and he was getting overworked and he just had to get
it out in some other way besides jumping.
NICK:
The worst show? It was in England in some small town. I think
it was called Stoke On Trent. It was just a little pub, and there was
barely anyone there. Someone was heckling us. P-Nut walked off the stage
and said, "Who said that? Fuck all o' you all." It was miserable, but
when it comes to a situation like that--like our European tour, which
wasn't real successful numbers-wise due to our following--we just had to
say, "Okay we're tourists now. Let's just drink beer and enjoy this."
