Monthly Archives: April 2021

311 Fan Spotlights, Tales from a 311 addict

311 Fan Spotlight #322 – 4/19/21 – Juan Carlos!

Hello again, my friends in 311 nation! I hope everyone was able to rock out to the Soundsystem live stream, it was fire! Let’s not delay anymore, it’s time to meet another fan. This week we have the story of Juan Carlos!

It was from the very beginning when 311 formed that Juan has been a fan. “As a musician by degree I felt like I had a pretty good appreciation for the music and all the hidden nuggets (a music theorists dream) strategically planted.”

What drew Juan to the music was, well, the music. “Its actually quite technical all around and I appreciate the musicality. More than that lyrically very impressive messaging and meaningful. I dig that!”

For show count, Juan is somewhere between 80-100. First show was in 1997 in New York. As for favorite events, he loves the cruises. “The cruises are the best to me. A chance to just chill and enjoy great music day after day with all my friends… EXCITABLES!”

Song that Juan loves and means the most to him is “Get Down” off of the Uplifter album. For favorite lyric, it’s just too difficult for him to narrow down. However he does love what has become the bands motto, “Stay positive and love your life.”

Juan was born in Connecticut but spent most of his adult life in Vermont. Currently he is residing in Kansas City, Missouri, but is seriously debating moving to Portugal. To fund his 311 habit, he works in Healthcare IT. “I guess I have that to be thankful for it funding my 311 hat & poster collection. I have traveled all over the globe for work and I’m about to retire soon… cannot wait!!!”

Interesting fact about Juan, he has a music degree from Berklee in percussion (he was a jazz drummer). He is also an ordained minister! Not to mention that he works full-time and is carrying a full course load at St. Louis University. In the little free time he has, he loves to cook. As for guilty pleasure? “At 60yo I’m guilty about nothing….but a band that I also REALLY enjoy is Dance Gavin Dance!!!!!!”

As for other musicians that Juan loves, the list includes “Miles Davis, Chick Corea, Paco de Lucia, Frank Zappa, Maynard Furgueson, Karnivool, Led Zeppelin, Steely Dan, Tropidelic..  and on and on and on… TOMITA!”

Juan would like to send this message to 311: “I Love you guys! Don’t retire please!!! And oh ya .. I’ve been to see y’all a whole lot. Come visit me some time. #hahahaha”

Now his words to all the other 311 fans out there:

“We live in a jacked up world, and its so easy to get caught up in the BS, hate, the death, destruction, hyperbole, and lies. STOP and listen to the music, 311 MUSIC. IT always fixes me and it will fix you!”

That’s the story of Juan Carlos! Much gratitude to him for sharing. As always, thank you readers for the continued support. Have an amazing week!

Much Love – The Runt

311 Fan Spotlights, Tales from a 311 addict

311 Fan Spotlight #321 – 4/12/21 – Christie Carlin!

Welcome again friends in 311 nation! It’s time to meet another fan. This week the spotlight takes aim at Christie Carlin!

It was thanks to a friend that Christie discovered 311. He played some songs for her & another friend while playing along on guitar. “We thought highly of his music taste, and for a good reason. I also had a boy I dated that played Grassroots and would sing along with it, I was impressed. Their music was fun, upbeat, stoney, and they are all so handsome. It was a no brainer, I was hooked.”

For show count, Christie said she’s tried many times to get a number but she gives up because it’s just too difficult. Her first show was June 3, 1995, at the Fiddler’s Green Amphitheater. “The KTCL Big Adventure, with a bunch of bands, including Sublime.  It was the start of a lifetime obsession.  They used to play The Fox in Boulder, The Ogden in Denver, and the Aggie in Fort Collins when they came.  You could find me at all of them.  I saw them in Grand Junction, Vail, Colorado Springs.  Every year at Red Rocks since their first show in 1996.  My first 311 day was 2014 and my first cruise 2015.”

As for favorite, Christie said the cruises are the best experience. “I have done the last 3.  They are so magical, I met so many people, and had so many fun adventures.  Truly an experience that I will never forget and people that will be in my life forever.”

Song that is her favorite, there are many and it changes from album to album. From the start though, she always loved “Hydroponic” and she said it always gives her happy chills. “I just remember memorizing all the words and driving around Denver with my bestie, singing and smoking weed.  It has always stuck out for me, and always a favorite to hear live.”

For lyrics, she loves the line from 8:16AM, “There’s nothing like the comfort of a silence that’s comfortable, not talking small, just skip the bull.” She also loves this lyric, “Everything I eat is from the Earth, right? I am what I eat, straight up Earth, right? Nothing but a walking sack of Earth, nice to meet you, how do ya do? Guess what, ya, you’re one too.”

Christie was born in the bay area of California, then moved to Glendale, Arizona, and finally landed in beautiful Colorado. She grew up in Aurora and has now lived in Denver for the last 30 plus years. ” I moved to Georgia for a while, but didn’t like it and I came back to Denver.  The Mile High City is home, but I still love to visit the world.”

For work, Christie has a tattoo removal business called Wise Choice Tattoo Removal. She also had a part time job as a server at Comedy Works Downtown in Denver, but that has been closed since the pandemic started. Thankfully her tattoo removal business has been doing well. “Business has been great, and I don’t need a second job anymore.  I remove tattoos and do skin treatments with my PicoSure laser.  Helping people remove the past, is what I love to do, and I’m happy to help my clients.”

Fun fact about Christie – she won a scholarship in high school to be an exchange student for the summer in Sweden. ” I lived in a small village of less than 100 people.  Vebomark, Sweden was my home for over 3 months.  I loved it.  I had one older host sister, and 5 younger host siblings.  We are all connected via Facebook now.  It was the time of my life, I remember it very well.  I got to go past the arctic circle, a really beautiful country.  I plan on returning once it is safe.  Definitely started my passion for travel.  And I can speak a little Swedish, just a little.”

Like many others with tattoos, Christie said they are one thing that makes her unique. “I love them, but I have also had about 20 of mine removed.  I actually removed my 311 tattoo.  It was the bars from the Blue album tour poster, and over time it became a square.  I removed it and got the traditional 311 on my shoulder with the flower of Jamaica around it, (I got it right before my first cruise).  I have all my favorite bands on my spine, but when I ran out of room, I started on my leg.  I love tattoos.”

Music that Christie loves has changed over the years, but her current loves include Passafire, RDGLDGRN, Voo Doo Glow Skulls, Mustard Plug, Tool, Beastie Boys, Sublime, Incubus, Ballyhoo!, Bumpin Uglies, Prof, Lucky Daye, H.E.R., Snot, SZA, Manchester Orchestra, Anderson Paak, Hobo Johnson, Chali 2 Na, and Hirie. “Not much I don’t like, music is life.”

As for guilty pleasure, Christie loves the show “Below Deck.” “Reality drama is silly, but I love it.” She also loves the movie Goodfellas and she says she could watch it every day. She also loves to cook! “Mexican food is my favorite.  Give me tacos any day!  Don’t forget the Margarita.”

To 311, Christie would like to say, “Thank you for a lifelong journey filled with music and friends.”

Now her words to her fellow 311 fans:

“I know that 2020/2021 has been a hell of a year.  I can’t wait to sing and dance next to all of you again.  It will happen, and when it does, I will be crying happy tears. so give me hugs.”

There you have the story of Christie Carlin! Much thanks for her sharing it, and of course as always to the readers each week! Now an important message – Happy Birthday Nick Hexum!

Hope you all have an amazing week!

Much Love – The Runt

Uncategorized

311 Fan Spotlight #320 – 4/5/21 – Ziva Narendra!

Welcome back friends! It’s time for a new 311 fan spotlight! Let’s read the story of Ziva Narendra!

Ziva said he considers himself a late bloomer as far as becoming a 311 fan, because is wasn’t until “Transistor” came out and a metalhead buddy that he went to pilot school with got him tuned into the 1997 MTV Sports and Music Festival, which is where he saw 311 play on his T.V. “I was blown away by their energy and music which was unlike anything I had heard before my entire life (or “weird” as I first described them upon my first time listening to “Down” back in ’95). It wasn’t long until I got Transistor on cassette only to miss that awesome hidden intro only available through CD. One funny story with that particular album and that one buddy of mine, we were making our way moving from Brownsville to Dallas in my old busted Ford Escort, TX, which is about an 8 hour drive. We put Transistor on back to back throughout the entire trip. It was either that or Aqua. 😁”

As for show count, Ziva has lived outside the U.S. for most of his life, so he’s only been able to see them live when visiting the U.S. He’s logged 19 shows so far, including 311 Day events and cruises. Very first show for him was in Gainesville, Florida, October 16, 2001. “With my good friend Darren who went to UF. “From Chaos” had just been released that summer and despite the not so large crowd I was completely mesmerized for seeing my boys live for the first time. ONESIDEDZERO opened for them and SA was still heavy into sporting track pants.”

As for favorite show/event, Ziva chose 311 Day 2014 as one of the best experiences in his life. “Not only because it was my first 311 Day, but that was the event that truly exposed me to the 311 universe – the fans, the random encounters, tiny moments leading to the show, the merch trades (including the leather wristbands I got made and became favorite among many fans – a yearly tradition since then), the setlist, the release of Stereolithic…it was completely beyond belief for me to actually be there.”

As for a non-special event, Ziva said the show on August 1, 2004, in Tampa was amazing. “I went alone and had just collected my ticket halfway between Orlando and Tampa from a dude who sold it through eBay. The Roots opened with a bang and got me hyped up because I was so (and still am) into their music. 311 came out with a setlist of 28 songs and I got to hear “Gap” live for the first time (jumped like crazy with a random dude standing in front of me who sang “Eat smoked fish” as loud as I was).” One more show that he holds dear was the time 311 went to Indonesia (where he was born & raised) in 2010. It was a historical moment not just for the band, but also for the fans. “We ‘abused’ 311 Mgmt’s Twitter so hard to the point where we caught their attention and were able to connect them with a local promoter. One of the most awesome things about that one show – the floor tickets were sold at an even Rp.311.000 (around $28.00). This was also the first time I got to meet Gustavo “Guslifter” Chavez and his wife Cindy who had followed the band throughout their 2010 Asia tour. To meet a fellow 311 fan who’s also an aviator and into basketball? Instant connection!”

As for favorite song, Ziva said “Use of Time” has always been his #1 and he believes it will stay that way. “Beautifully-composed, solid, somewhat eerie in a spacey-rockin’ kind of way, penetrates the soul.” As for a favorite lyric, he always goes back to the chorus from the song “1,2,3:” “The deepest dreams we have could be tomorrow’s song.” Lately, he’s also been drawn to words from “Don’t You Worry” which is the simple message of “Everything that has a beginning, has an end.”

Jakarta, Indonesia, is where Ziva was born and raised in a working class family. His parents were married very young, at the ages of 22 and 20, which was common in his country during those times. “My dad worked hard to provide for his family while my mom, despite having to sacrifice her dream career as a stewardess, kept everything at home intact. They were both children of the ’60s so music has always been part of our daily lives – with The Beatles being a strong foundation among others. I have an older brother who grew up with pretty much the same musical influence as mine (New Wave n’ all) and a sister who’s 8 years younger than me and grew up with the likes of Spice Girls and early emo/screamo bands.”

School was generally normal for Ziva and his siblings, despite having to move several times because of his fathers work and studies. They lived in Ireland and the Netherlands for a while. “Gotta say those were some of the times of our lives – especially being able to tune in to music channels on television (SKY Channel was the prominent one in Europe in those days – I don’t think they had MTV yet back in ’86).” Ziva says he considers his parents to have been quite fair in he and his siblings upbringing, emphasizing the importance of old eastern traditions (religion, norms, and values) while not imposing them too much. “They encouraged their children to explore passion and talents, from sports to music. I guess that kind of got me going in the first place to really get into performing music and got into a band in high school.”

First time living on his own overseas was in 1997 during his pilot training days in Texas. Then in 1999 he moved to Florida to pursue his degree and it’s when he was able to see his first few 311 shows. As for Ziva’s career, he’s always been in aviation. “I started out with taking part time jobs throughout my days in college – to as many as four jobs between classes (including one at a local restaurant). My true professional career started back home in ’05 – flying for one of the leading air charter companies. I started my own aviation consulting business in 2014, which I still run to this day. My love for aviation, as much as my love for music, roots back to my childhood days and to have both in my life in harmony is a beautiful thing.”

Fun fact about Ziva is that he said he’s currently learning how to cook properly at home! He also said he’s always considered himself a jack of all trades, never really mastering one thing but always dabbling a little in everything. “Keeps things flowing and unpredictable. Or maybe it’s just an excuse for being so easily distracted. I do make a helluva Old Fashioned, though.”🙂 As for guilty pleasure, Ziva said the show “The Wonder Years” is his and he still likes to watch it on DVD.

As for music that Ziva loves aside from 311, his early years were heavily influenced by sounds of The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Duran Duran, A-Ha, and countless other 80’s legends. “Being a teen in the ’90s and wanting so hard to play in a band would find me infused by alt-rock, hip hop/R’n’B, and smooth jazz scenes at the time – from Stone Temple Pilots to Sting, Incognito to Dada, Soundgarden to De La Soul, and much much more. Was fortunate to have a girlfriend who made me countless mixtapes of different kinds of music including little-known as well as indie artists.”

To 311, Ziva has this message: “For your consistency…thank you.”

Now to all the other 311 fans out there, here are his words:

“Let’s always celebrate peace and unity through diversity!”

Many thanks to Ziva for sharing his story! Of course, much gratitude to all of the supporters of this project. I hope you all enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it! Sending you all so much light & love. Have an amazing week!

Much Love – The Runt