nick hexum

311: 2010 Unity Tour
Opening/Supporting Acts: Pepper, The Offspring
Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre
Chula Vista, CA
July 25, 2010

By: Nevra Azerkan
Rating:

Although this show was part of the Unity Tour, 91x FM in San Diego was including the tour lineup with their own annual festival. So many other bands were playing since the morning. I arrived towards the end of Cake’s set, but from what I heard they really got the crowd going. Pepper took the stage next and you could tell that they had a loyal following in the audience. I interviewed their drummer, Yesod Williams prior to them taking the stage and they seemed pretty chill in their tour bus. He said it was the last show on the tour and that they had a great time and couldn’t wait for today’s show. They played favorites from In With the Old and Kona Town.

They were followed by another supporting act, The Offspring, who played all their hit songs including: “Come Out and Play”, “Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)”, “Why Don’t You Get A Job”, “I Want You Bad”, “Can’t Get My (Head Around You)”, and “You’re Gonna Go Far, Kid” among others. The crowd went wild for these guys. I haven’t really kept up with this band in years and was surprised by how much they’ve aged. But that hasn’t slowed them down one bit. They were a dynamic bunch and had everyone jumping up and down. I was surprised that many, if not all, seemed to know every single one of their songs. They were a real crowd pleaser and the perfect choice to precede 311.

311 was my must see at this concert. I have wanted to see these guys forever and had hoped to see them play with Incubus, but beggars can’t be choosers. The Offspring and Pepper prepared the fans for 311, but now it was the moment of truth. Their set list included: “Amber”, “Come Original”, “Love Song”, “Down”, “Creatures (For a While)”, “All Mixed Up”, “Flowing”, “Beautiful Disaster”, and “You Wouldn’t Believe”. I was hoping for a show that would rival some of the best I’ve been to and 311 did not disappoint. Nick Hexum and SA Martinez were all over that stage, dancing and rocking out. Interestingly enough, Nick even had a costume change mid-set. We even had a crazed fan girl jump on stage to presumably jump Nick, but security was quick and whisked her away before she could try anything. But I must say, it has been a long time since I have seen a large crowd with an equal amount of guys and girls really and I mean really get into the music. Not just singing along and dancing, but really screaming their heads off and full on pumped up. While I am sure many were under the influence it was still a sight to see and the concert to be at that night.