It was a steamy night in Charlotte as 311 made a summer stop at the Charlotte Metro Credit Union Ampitheatre on their Unity Tour bringing Danish rockers New Politics along for the ride. For once, the weather would be cooperative and fans would get
to enjoy an evening of music without being poured on. Those that arrived early were treated to a fantastic opening set from New Politics that had the venue on their feet. The three piece rockers are a lively bunch to say the least and they tore up
the ampitheatre stage in rare form. Drummer Louis Vecchio was standing and egging the fans on as guitarist Soren Hansen zoomed across the stage as he played. The highlight of their set occurred during their cover of “Sabotage” by the Beastie Boys
when frontman David Boyd really kicked things up a notch. Despite the concrete stage, Boyd was doing flips, handstands, and breakdancing at a frenzied pace. It was an incredible spectacle of acrobatics and dance which took the performance to an
entirely different level. These guys really know how to rock and by the end of their set they were drenched in sweat as the audience roared its appreciation. It would be a difficult act for any band to have to follow.
As night fell, 311 took the stage and began their own high intensity set. This soon was a night fans would not forget as the band was in top form performing 24 songs including eight off the new album “Mosiac” and all the requisite fan favorites. 311’s unique blend of rock, reggae, and hip-hop is something special and the crowd was totally in the moment as they jumped and danced in the aisles and on the lawn all evening long. Vocalists Nick Hexum and Doug “SA” Martinez sounded as good as ever as they traded off throughout the set. One of the highlights of their set was a wicked bass solo from Aaron “P-Nut” Wills which had the entire venue shouting “P-Nut! P-Nut!” The stage featured an LED light screen which changed colors and designs with drummer Chad Sexton’s kit on a riser beneath it. Lead guitarist Tim Mahoney was on point providing riff after riff but chose to stay mostly in the background as his fellow bandmates played to the crowd. During “Applied Science,” Chad got a chance for a drum solo as well as the entire band which took participated on drums. The band closed out their regular set with a ripping version of their biggest hit “Down” from their debut album before returning for a three song encore that left the audience begging for more.
It was a great night of rock in the Queen City as both 311 and New Politics gave us the show of the summer. Don’t miss your chance to check out the Unity Tour when it makes a stop in your town.
311 setlist:
Perfect Mistake
Transistor
All Mixed Up
Too Late
Large in the Margin
Come Original
Hey Yo
Amber
Sick Tight
Bass Solo
Wildfire
Beautiful Disaster
Use of Time
One and the Same
Applied Science (with drum solo by Chad Sexton and the entire band)
‘Til the City’s On Fire
Beyond the Gray Sky
Jackpot
Too Much To Think
Offbeat Back Ass
Down
Encore:
Freak Out
On a Roll
Creatures (For a While)
We would like to thank Kim Shiver from Livenation for the credentials to review the show.
