Don\’t laugh, because I\’m serious about this one.
311 is as widely reviled as they are revered, and while they\’ve dropped some truly HIDEOUS songs in more than 20 years as a band (there\’s no consensus on the WORST song, but a lot of fans argued about it here), they still make one of the most interesting music hybrids (nu metal meets reggae meets funk meets pop meets rap?) I\’ve ever heard.
And on \”Music,\” their first album, I honestly don\’t think they did it better.
In high school, I was in a garage band with my friends James and Joey, the Staubes bros. I couldn\’t have asked for better musical compatriots because the two of them were more musically diverse than anybody I\’ve ever met before or since. We\’d geek out about Chick Corea, Dave Weckl and John Patitucci just as much as we\’d get worked up about Nirvana or Soundgarden.
So, for music fiends such as ourselves, this 311 album ticked a lot of boxes. First off, they have an INCREDIBLE rhythm section. Drummer Chad Sexton is an absolute BEAST, and plays this super-crisp, snappy piccolo snare which makes the grooves feel EXTRA tight; bassist Aaron \”P-Nut\” Willis is just as comfortable with a reggae dub as he is with a heavy rock riff; and lead guitarist Tim Mahoney brings a metal edge to everything they play.
\”Welcome\” gives away the game from the outset. It opens as this funky, reggae-infused groove, with a laid back, sung melody, and then it quickly kicks up into this lumbering, rap-heavy rock riff that meanders into these jazzy transitions which lead into even more sections of the song. It almost feels like a musical maze, and for music nerds like the Staubes bros. and myself, it was sheer ear candy.
\”Unity\” was the track we selected to cover for our band\’s repertoire, and I still think it\’s one of their all-time best. It opens as an uptempo, nu metal grind, and then suddenly slows down into a head-banging dirge, only to speed up again slightly into this building crescendo, where it stops and then starts the cycle again.
Songs like \”Visit\” and \”Paradise\” show off lead singer Nick Hexum\’s ability to carry off a really pretty melody over the heavy rock riffs, where songs like \”Freak Out\” and \”My Stoney Baby\” show off the rhythm section\’s ability to play just about ANYTHING without missing a beat.
This album absolutely ROCKS, but has one glaring weakness — the lyrics. 311 are not renowned for their lyrical prowess. On \”Hydroponic,\” Hexum raps:
Everything I eat is from the Earth, right?
I am what I eat, straight up Earth, right?
Nothin\’ but a walkin\’ sack of Earth
Nice to meet you, how do you do?
Guess what? Yeah, you\’re one, too!
The words are honestly abysmal sometimes, but with beats this funky and grooves so heavy, who really cares? I mean, it\’s worked out for the Red Hot Chili Peppers for just as many years, right?