Hello again friends out there in the Excitable 311 nation! Welcome back to the next edition of the 311 fan spotlight. Let’s meet Zach McConnell!
It was during the holiday season in 2017 that Zach was going through an awful heartbreak. He had just graduated high school and was hanging out with a friend who confided in music like he did and still does. ” I played drums my whole life, and marched quads in the drumline for a couple years. And music of that nature (DCI) was all that I listened to. So naturally he showed me beautiful disaster, knowing it would get my attention and lift my spirits. As soon as I heard that snare, I was a fan. The rest was a bonus that I wasn’t ready for. All I listened to for a while was the greatest hits album. And then mosaic after that and that’s still a top 3 album for me I love essentially everything on that album. But because I was also into instrumental bands like snarky puppy, I got recommended the Nick Hexum Quintet album and that made me respect Nick as an artist so much more. So many years in the game, and still looking for new ways to jam. Love it.”
For show count, Zach is at 15 and it’s about to be 16 at Reggae Rise Up. “One of them spiritually and all the rest physically lol, a friend of mine who we will name sal for privacy purposes, gave me a nibble of some shrooms at the hob Orlando and I Left earth completely lol. Missed most of that one.” First show for Zach was at Red Rocks in 2018 and then he saw them the next night at the Ogden Theater. “Which is also the show that got me into collecting posters! Soon after I discovered the band they announced the 420 red rocks weekend of stoner glory I bought tickets for me and my dad and decided we’ll figure out the rest later. My dad being the absolute champion that he is, DROVE ME FROM FL TO COLORADO TO SEE A BAND HE BARLEY KNEW! the car broke down mid way and we had plenty of reasons to turn around but we kept goin! Also his birthday is 420 so that made it even more special. It was an amazing experience that I’ll never forget. I was bullied my whole life growing up for being overweight and to go that far away from home and get welcomed into a whole family was life changing and from then on I’ve wanted to make music/ join a band to give someone else that second family too.”
As for favorite experience so far, Zach chose the 420 show at the Aggie Theater in 2019. “The plan was for me to fly to Maryland to see a friend and then we were gonna fly together to the shows. But there wasn’t any available out of Maryland, so we rented a Uhaul van put a mattress in it and drove all the way to Colorado last minute. That 3 show weekend started at the Ogden theater so we drove literally from his parking lot in Maryland to the gas station across the street from the Ogden all in one shot. And my stoney self was dressed in full winter gear because In 2018 ON THESE SAME EXACT DAYS OF THE YEAR it snowed and now it was hot! 311 fans being the gems that they are let me scoot around the line to follow the shade. And when the doors finally opened people kept telling me to go ahead of them in line just so I could secure the Miles Tsang foil that night. We luckily found a hotel with an open room night of, and headed to red rocks the next day. Got to meet a bunch of friends I made online in the 311 FB groups. The next day we realized Ft collins isint necessarily around the corner from red rocks and I needed a new ride. Someone I met on FB that day was kind enough to pick me up and take me to the show and even drop me off at the airport afterwards. That night was first/only time I got a signed print from the booth, but they literally played all ten of my top 10 songs I wanted to hear that night. And then some! It felt like a musical adventure from a movie!”
For favorite songs, it varies for Zach. Some he relates to heavily and some have influenced him to make changes in his life that have brought him positive changes. “And for that reason, I gotta go with come original. That song is why I picked up a bass in the first place, let alone get to where I’m at touring with some of my favorite bands playing my favorite venues now!”
There are many lyrics that are meaningful to Zach. “I love how in Welcome, they talk about how money isn’t t the only thing they’re after because it just fixes material things. In Silver they talk about how some people just love to disagree for the sake of disagreeing. And that even if you don’t like the music it’s a waste of your time to hate on it. I also love in Offbeat Bareass how they talk about people getting arrested for marijuana, and how in some cases people with far far worse crimes would get paroled to make room for a stoner. Another one I love is in Boom Shanka. I have had anger issues my whole life and I have issues letting things go. ‘Every time I think I got it figured something bigger always jumps in the frame, something gets in the way. Now I’m ready to turn the page on yesterdays and forgive them, now I’m willing to disengage to seize the day and move on.’ That song helped me a lot . Places where the mind goes too. It was comforting to know when my idols can have vulnerable moments or sad thoughts.”
Pembroke Pines, Florida is where Zach was born. Then his dad got a job offer in New York and they moved up there during his elementary school years, then they ended up back in Florida later on. “In between those big moves was plenty of smaller moves. Never really had many friends, never met anyone personable in any of the sports I tried to play. So I just confided in games and food. One year for Christmas my dad bought me a drum set and I fell in love with it and just played and played till it fell apart.I really loved it. So since it was much cheaper and we could rent one through the school I picked up trumpet and played in the band at school All the way through high school. I didn’t make too many friends there but all my teachers could see I had a real passion for it and they would all go above and beyond to help me further it. I had a knack to learn by ear and picked up marching drums fast. In high school I marched bass drum and quads, performed at Tropicana stadium and we won the best drum line in our state!”
Being a 311 fan in high school, it made Zach want to play drums even more but they are really expensive. So after seeing Pnut perform in Jacksonville, Florida in 2018, he decided he wanted to learn how to play bass. “Because if I could have as much fun as him for a living I won! So a friend of mine loaned me his bass just to get a feel for it and I totally fell in love with it because it was so different. Marching drums are very uniform and bass is very open ended. You can play it however you want. Everyone plays a little differently. So with the first stimulus check we got, I bought my Warwick streamer bass, and I decided that day I have no idea how I’d do it. But I WILL make this dream work and I WILL play bass and spread the love and positivity like Pnut and 311. I just didn’t have any friends with the same dreams or aspirations so I was on my own. As time went on, I went to more shows , looked up more and more tabs online teaching myself countless 311 songs, collected more and more merch and joined more and more FB groups. And kind of accumulated my own audience of online friends so my cover videos grew and grew, and bands I look up that I found through 311 like ballyhoo!, Fortunate Youth and The Elovaters started reaching out and commenting on my covers telling me both online and in person at the shows that I have what it takes to make my dreams a reality. So I kept at it and finally June of 2022, literally the DAY AFTER I had a 1 on 1 Jammcard talk with Pnut who reassured me the light at the end of the tunnel was near, a 311 tribute band reached out and asked me to play, and the band I’m in now, Cloud9 Vibes, who tours all around Florida, they’ve played reggae rise up and 311 cruise pre parties and they’ve played most to the venues in FL with all of the bands I love. Asked me to learn their music and was willing to give me a shot. And here we are now gearing up for a tour with ballyhoo named the sleepin on the couch tour from 2/28 -3/5. Here’s some key points in my journey just to kind of map it out how fast this all happened: Pnuts birthday 2018 I tweeted him telling him I wanted to bring people together and play music like him for a lifetime and he said “channel your thoughts and actions for exactly that” from then to March of 2020 I played a Ibanez 4 string that my friend loaned to me. No amp either just playing to myself. Then I got my first amp as a birthday present from my brother in 2019 and I bought my Warwick in March of 2020. Then from 2020-2022 I just networked as much as possible put myself out there as much as possible posted a ton of covers and started to build a name for myself even if it was just the kid who can slap bass pretty good on Facebook. Mid 2022 I joined Cloud9 Vibes and September of 2022 I was playing cafe davinci on my first tour supporting shwayze for hundreds and hundreds of people. And now we’ve played a handful of festivals and are gearing up for our 2nd FL tour with a stop in Baton Rouge LA too! Literally went from the crowd to the stage in a matter of months. Lots of my idols are now friends and it still blows my mind that I’m in the position I’m in. This last October for the blue/transistor shows me and my musical brother Jacob somehow got the blessing to set up and jam an after party after the blue album show AT the hob!! To play the same venue as 311 on the same day is just insane. Energy started low but by the end of the night we had that place hype!! And by the end of the night I mean 3am haha. 311 has given me new perspective on life and how I view myself and the opportunities I’m given. 311 has given me a second family that has made most of the shows I’ve attended possible by helping me get rides or even plane tickets sometimes . I was just a kid working at a little Caesar’s selling pins and posters to get concert money hoping one day I’d be on the other Side and here I am now. Actually looking foward to the future and playing shows I never thought I would. But it’s only the beginning! Being 23 I missed most of 311s whole career but the handful of years I’ve been around it’s totally changed the course of my life and how I go about life.”
Something that Zach is really in to that most don’t know about is collecting Nike/Jordan’s. As for something that makes him unique, Zach said he’s living proof that you can make your dreams come true. “I’ve had countless reasons to give up but I never did thanks to to reassurance of my friends family and the people I look up to. And I’m lucky enough to have had that musical ambition from my earliest memories. Anyone can do it if you’re ready for the opportunity when it comes!”
Other bands that Zach loves include Ballyhoo!, Polyphia, Tech N9ne, and of course, his band Cloud9 Vibes. “I can get into anything that’s not edm country or rap honestly.” As for guilty pleasure, that comes in food form. “I could scarf down 311 bags of lays baked barbecue chips if given the chance.”
To 311, Zach would like to share these words: “Thank you for believing in me when you had no reason to, and thank you for pushing through every setback you’ve had your whole career to make it long enough to inspire someone my age to such a great extent.”
Now here are his words to all the other fans in the universe:
“I want to say thank you to everyone I’ve met through 311. Both in person and online, both through music and through merch or even mutual friends. Not only have you given me new hope in the world but your positive influence has lead me to a place I didn’t think I’d be at for a long time. The ball is in my court now and it’s my turn to bring people together and spread the love through slap bass.”
Many thanks to Zach for sharing your story! Everyone make a point to check out Cloud9 Vibes if you get the chance. As always, all my gratitude to the supporters of this little blog each week. Sending you all tons of positivity!
Much Love – The Runt