Hello again my friends out there in 311 nation! Are we ready for a new fan spotlight? I think so! Let’s not delay and meet Sean Pursley!

The year was 1995. Age for Sean was 15. He was just starting to get really into music. While Sublime was his favorite band at that time, 311 was a close second. “I remember waking up Christmas morning to a brand new CD player with a copy of the blue album and No Doubt’s Tragic Kingdom from there I was hooked to their unique sound.  Although I had no idea what they were saying in the lyrics and I wasn’t one to sit down with the lyrics.”

Show count for Sean is at 15, which includes 311 Day 2016 and Red, White, & Boom 2016. Currently he has tickets for the San Diego warm up shows and 311 Day 2018. “My first show was at Irvine Meadows Amphitheater 7-1-2000 with Incubus and KMK.  It was a blast my friend and I sat in the grass and smoked schwag weed all night, while others danced around a burning barrel.  This show began my love for live music.”

As far as favorite show or event, I’ll let Sean tell it in his own words. “Prior to 311 Day 2016 the most memorable event was Halloween 2001 at Universal Amphitheater, the boys were dresses as American hero’s, and Alien Ant Farm opened dressed as Oompa Loompahs.  This was Jessica’s first concert and we were all the way at the top, but we came out of that place drenched in sweat.  311 Day 2016, however sparked a new love for the band. We have met so many amazing people that we now consider family.  Since NOLA, we have been able to travel for some amazing shows, and look forward to seeing new people and places in the future.”

Song that Sean loves rocking out to is “What Was I Thinking.” “It definitely gets my blood pumping. On the beach in Vegas last summer, I went crazy for this song live. I’ll never forget it.” Some of Sean’s favorite lyrics come from the song “Brodels” – The goals to be a poet, and a carpenter, to be one who loves, to be one who works. The Nazz is not something that can be given, the Brodel lives inside you it comes from within.”

Southern California, about 60 miles north of Los Angeles, is where Sean grew up. As a kid he was really into sports, specifically baseball, soccer and roller hockey. During Sean’s senior year of high school, his parents moved him to Colorado, and he absolutely hated it. Upon graduation from high school he spent a brief time in Topeka, Kansas, then  moved it back on out to Cali. This is when he met his best friend and soul mate, Jessica. “After about a year of dating I decided to move back to Colorado to work with my dad building homes.  Jessica decided to come with, but the first few years were very difficult to adjust to a new place. I found that concerts were always a way to be excited for something, at the time we were big into KMK and the sub-noize scene, but live music has always been an important part of our relationship.  We have been living in Rifle, Colorado since 2007.  We have been married 11 years and have 2 beautiful children Skylar 8 and Jaykob almost 4.  We both feel that this place is a stepping stone for us and are both currently working on our careers with hopes of moving closer to a city.” Sean is currently working on his electrical apprenticeship and is just about to begin classes for it.

Sean mentioned that they have a love for music, and he said he is big into the white boy reggae scene. He enjoys the sounds of Sublime, Rebelution, Passafire, Through the Roots, Soja, Stick Figure, and Fortunate Youth. He also loves Blue October.

Favorite movie for Sean is The Wizard of Oz and it has been since he was just the young age of 4. Something that Sean said makes him unique is that he really tries to remain grateful for everything. “I take each day as an opportunity to be a better, father, husband, son, friend, employee… I take the ups and downs that life gives me and use them as stepping stones to be the best me I can be.” Guilty pleasure? Well you’ll have to just guess this one. “I’ll give you a hint, it’s green, legal in Colorado, and in abundance at 311 events.”

His message to 311 is simple yet powerful: “Thank you for the soundtrack.”

To all the other awesome fans:

“Thank you for being you and allowing me to be me, I have never felt the way I do amongst my excitable family.  I am honored to be part of such a united group of people, and am truly grateful for the many friendships that have come from this group.  Can’t wait to rock with all of you.”

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That my friends, is the story of Sean Pursley! Thanks Sean for being a part of this fan community and being your awesome self! I hope you all enjoyed reading about him and thank you for keeping this project alive. Until we meet again my friends, keep being awesome.

Much Love – The Runt

Hello again to all of 311 nation! Fan spotlight time has arrived again. This week we feature Joe Parisi!

A best friend from high school is how Joe was introduced to 311. She told him he had to go see them with her. “I remember seeing Down on TRL back in the day and enjoyed it, but never became a big 311 fan. I started listening to them to get ready for the show and to be honest I still wasn’t hooked. But after seeing them live for the first time it changed everything and i knew this was a band i wanted to see again as soon as possible. I’ve only missed three shows in New England in the past 12 years.”

Since that first show, Joe has seen 311 live 39 times. Magic number 40 will be at 311 Day 2018. His first show was November 23, 2005, in Lowell, Massachusetts. “2017 set a personal record of 10 shows in one year.” Favorite one so far was the most recent cruise. “I cannot miss another one under any circumstances. There’s nothing like the vibe created by the amazing fans on that ship. It’s not easy to get over 2000 people together trapped on a ship and have every last one of them treat you like their best friend.”

Song that means the most to Joe goes to “How Do You Feel.” His favorite lyric also comes from that song: “You know the time that you feel, when nothing else really matters, you’re on the spot in the world that you belong. How do you feel cause I couldn’t ask for a single thing more, how do you feel the moment you know just what you are for.” Here are some words from Joe on why he loves this song so much: “This song is everything about being a 311 fan to me. Whether its the cruise or 311 day or any regular tour date, theres nowhere else I would rather be. That’s the place I belong right now. This is also a unicorn song for me, I’ve never seen it live. And I’m REALLY hoping that at 311 day in Vegas I’ll finally get to hear it. I’ve always been a little sad that its such a rare song when the lyrics are 100% what being a 311 fan is all about.”

Gloucester, Massachusetts is where Joe grew up. He now lives in Leominster, Massachusetts, a little more central to the state and away from the coast. “Never thought I would ever leave the ocean but my family is still there so I get back all the time.” Estimating and sales of commercial doors and hardware for Jackson Lumber is how Joe makes a living and helps support his 311 habit. He was also a Boston Bruins season ticket holder for years, but the cost got too expensive so he now saves all of that money for 311 fun!

While hockey is the sport that completely engulfs Joe, he knows more about baseball than anything else. “When I was a kid I would read the MLB rule book and study stats to the point where I could tell you off the top of my head the date John Valentin had an unassisted triple play (July 8, 1994). I think I would make a great baseball coach, way better than I would be at hockey.” Random talent Joe has is that he can easily tell what type of wood something is made out of. Guilty pleasure for him is beer! “I am so lucky to live in the Northeast with some of the best breweries on the planet. I used to be pretty good at eating healthy but the past couple of years thats all gone down the drain thanks to my weekly (or more) visits to one of our fine local breweries.”

Joe briefly hosted a radio show in college where he played 90’s music, so the sounds from that decade will always hold a special place in his heart. “I’ve probably seen Third Eye Blind the most times after 311. Live music is the best and I’ve seen a wide array of bands- Metallica, Matchbox 20, John Mayer, Rebelution, Roger Waters, Green Day, Blink 182, DMB to name a few. Since seeing RDGLDGRN on the cruise I’ve been REALLY into them.”

To 311, Joe would like to say this: “Thanks for keeping to the message of positivity and unity. In a world full of ex girlfriend/boyfriend revenge songs, it’s quite an achievement to have a catalog of music as large as yours without focusing about the negative.”

Joe’s message to all the other 311 fans:

“I’ve met some of the most genuine people at 311 events and it’s a pleasure every time. Cant wait to rock VEGAS with you!”

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That is the story of Joe Parisi! Thanks for being a part of the spotlights Joe, and thanks to all the wonderful fans that make up this community for reading. Go now, be awesome, spread the positivity to everyone you meet!

Much love – The Runt

Hey there excitable 311 nation! We are back at it with another fan spotlight. This week we meet the lovely Beth Perazzo!

It was just a short while ago, back in 2012, that Beth became a fan of 311 when she went on the cruise that year. “I had gone on a few Sixthman cruises and after I went on Rock Boat in March 2012 I wanted to go on another cruise and I saw the 311 cruise was going in May.  I didn’t have anyone to go with so I booked a room as an independent traveler.  It was the best decision!  I had a blast and I loved how amazing 311 is live.  I also met a lot of really awesome new friends!”

Show count is unknown for Beth, but it has been quite a few since she started just five years ago. She has seen them in many locations including Red Rocks and Las Vegas. The best show she has seen so far was the beach show on the 2012 cruise. “It was so awesome to watch them from the beach and in the water and the energy from the people and the band was amazing.  Everyone there was having the time of their life!”

Song that means the most to Beth is “Time Bomb.” “Since my first show was 2012 Universal Pulse was the new album and at the time the one I listened to the most.  I like this song because it has the lyrics “Let me introduce you, to the excitable crew”. That always makes me think they were talking to me on the 2012 cruise and they were telling me about all the amazing people I was about to me and what brings them all together is their love for 311, music and each other.”

Parma, Ohio is where Beth grew up, it’s just outside of Cleveland. In high school, Beth made the decision to join the military and she left for the Naval Academy right after she graduated. Four years later she became a United States Marine Corps officer. Her career has flourished since then and she has lived in Georgia, Missouri, California, New Jersey, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and now Florida.

After the cruise in 2012, Beth became friends with Chuck Haskin and then on the 2013 cruise he introduced her to Tony Perazzo. “We saw each other a couple times a year for shows and skiing but were only friends until last year when I finally realized how great Tony is and how great he could be for me.  Things moved quickly and we were in Las Vegas last year to see 311 in July so we decided it was the perfect time to get married.  We did it in his jeep in a drive through, which was perfect because it was unique and memorable, and still very special.  Our love of music is a big part of why we are great and love going to shows together.  I can definitely say that 311 played a part in us getting together and has changed my life in so many positive ways.”

Beth has been deployed to Kuwait and Iraq during her Marine career. “Deploying is part of military life and I’m glad I had the experience.  It challenged me and taught me many good life lessons.” She has also done really well in her career which is not easy as a female, so she is very proud of her accomplishments. “ And I’m very fortunate now to have Tony, who is so supportive of me.”

Guilty pleasure for Beth is the show Greys Anatomy. “I’ll be sad when it finally goes off the air.” One of her other favorite musical talents is Dispatch. She also loves Pearl Jam, Shinedown, Ballyhoo!, and Dirty Heads. “I also love acoustic and harmonies like with Mumford and Sons and a lot of my rock boat bands are like this.  I also like some country and I think Zac Brown Band is one of the best.”

To 311 Beth would love to say: “Thank you for continuing to make music and touring, because of you I’ve met so many amazing friends and my husband, and I love that we all continue to share our love of what you do.”

Her message to all the other fans out there:

“Keep being a family and being friendly to new people and making them feel welcome and part of something special!”

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Thanks Beth Perazzo for sharing your story! I’m proud to call Beth a personal friend and was so happy to be able to share her story. Thanks all for reading each week. Keep on being amazing and go spread the positivity!

Much Love – The Runt