311 Talks Metal Influences, Upcoming Tour + New Album Details!

You wouldn’t readily guess it, but 311 loves metal! Yeap! 311 is a group that plays funky alternative rock jams, but (not so secretly) grooves to metal bands as heavy as Pantera and System of a Down. In this interview 311 talks about their love for metal and how it’s influenced them over the years. Plus! Bonus questions about their upcoming tour with The Offspring and Gym Class Heroes and their next album!

What hard rock / metal bands have been an influence on 311’s signature sound?

Chad: The one big influence in 311 as a unit rock-wise is Bad Brains. But many rock bands have influenced 311 band members, like 24-7 Spyz, Helmet, Fishbone, Kiss, The Clash, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Aerosmith etc…Some made us dream, some influenced us musically. Of course to name all rock influences would take a while to compile and even then I bet we would forget one or two.

P-Nut: Iron Maiden’s harmony lead lines on the guitar have influenced our sound. And Steve Harris (Iron Maiden), Cliff Burton (Metallica) and Flea were early inspirations for my bass playing.

Nick: The whole band loves Pantera and Bad Brains. Me and P-Nut are big System of Down fans. There’s so much great musicianship in metal. We appreciate that. Working with producer Bob Rock and hearing all the Metallica stories was really cool.

Any hard rock / metal concerts that made impact on you?

P-Nut: Pantera changed us all, how heavy can heavy get?

Chad: My first Rock concert was Kiss in 1978. Changed my life. I was 7 years old and couldn’t believe it was real. I asked my mom if they were really playing or if it was fake because I couldn’t fathom it was in front of me. And so loud. And their makeup was brighter than any picture I had seen of them. “Larger than life”. It was the very beginning for me wanting to be in a rock band.

Nick: Pantera in Orange County in ’95 was the wildest pit I’ve ever been. A little too wild. I saw many people come out all bloody. Phil encouraged that. Seeing Alice in Chains with Anthrax Slayer and Megadeth was a lot of fun. That was back in Omaha in ’91. I think our whole band went.

311 & The Offspring are joining forces for 29 shows this summer, what can we expect?

Nick: It’s going to be a lot of fun, energy, and classic melodies.

You last toured together in 2010, how was that / any particular memories?

Nick: Big crowds. People came to party, mosh, and rock out.

What is a most memorable stage moment over your career?

Nick: Being on Late Show with David Letterman back in ’95 was a big moment for me. I had grown up loving his smart ass humor, so appearing on that stage felt like quite a triumph. More recently, we had a gospel choir join us for 311 Day 2016. That was very emotional for everyone.

How are things progressing with a new album from 311?

Nick: We have quite a few great songs. We were hoping to wrap it up before summer tour, but then we realized we had been working nonstop so we decided to take a few weeks off to enjoy summer and our families.

How will it sound?

Nick: We just keep taking everything further. The heavy stuff heavier and the funky stuff funkier. Music is a never ending journey. Just like our fans, we look forward to hearing the final versions turn out once the entire band has expressed themselves. Stay tuned!

311 will start their Never-Ending Summer tour July 25th! Click here for tickets and check out dates below! And if Mountain View is too South Bay for ya, no worries! They’re also playing Aftershock in Sacramento, CA this year! Check out the line-up here! And here for more info and tickets!