Last summer, 311 announced that they would be holding their 311 Day concert/convention in Las Vegas again this year. I bought a ticket to the two-day event, and booked a room at the New York-New York. The concerts were both awesome, and it was just fun to hang out in Las Vegas for a long weekend.
We got a fairly early start, given that Mindy had to work today. The drive was relaxing and we made pretty good time. Once we checked into the New York-New York, we took a walk to the MGM Grand and had some drinks.
We also saw Spring Cup Champion Tony Stewart at the MGM Grand, where he was taking part in a celebrity poker tournament. He would go on to win the race that took place in Las Vegas this weekend.
We walked up and down the Strip during the day. In the evening, we walked over to the MGM Grand where I got in line to get into the concert. I got in just after the doors opened, which was too early, but was much easier to deal with than the ridiculous crowds I encountered last time.
It turned out to be the best 311 concert I have ever attended, to date. The show was much better than 311 Day 2010, in my opinion. The sound was perfect. The crowd was awesome. My seat location was great. The band's energy was way up there. Their performances were nearly flawless. The added specialties for 311 Day Weekend actually enhanced the show. The intermission was short and didn't really interrupt the energy of the show much, unlike the multiple intermissions in 2010. And, of course, the setlist was full of rarely played songs. I saw 14 311 songs I had never seen performed live before, or 17 songs, if you count the bass instrumental, Coda, the remixed version of Sunset in July, and Nick's solo performance of Bob Marley's Waiting in Vain.
Visit my 311 website for a full setlist, with notes.
We spent some time at the Monte Carlo pool during the day. In the evening, just like last night, we walked over to the MGM Grand where I got in line to get into the concert.
Today was the fifth time I've seen 311 perform on the 11th day of a month (2 of which were on a March 11). I didn't think this show was as good of a show as the night before. It felt choppy. I wasn't thrilled with the setlist, and their energy and performances weren't as good as the prior night. With that said, this show was still amazing. The percussion ensemble was an awesome addition to the four songs they performed with them.
I saw nine songs live for the first time at this show. So, in the past two weekends covering three 311 shows, I saw 86 different songs performed, and 23 for the first time (or 27 for the first time, if you count Coda, the Sunset in July remix, and the Waiting in Vain cover).
Some song highlights at this show were Hive, Firewater, Lucky, Brodels, and the 4 songs performed with the percussion ensemble.
Visit my 311 website for a full setlist, with notes.
After checking out at the New York-New York, we ate breakfast at a nearby Blueberry Hill restaurant, and then drove to the Wynn to, hopefully, check in early at the Encore. We got a 59th floor panoramic suite that overlooked the Strip. The view was amazing and the suite was amazing!
After walking through the ridiculously opulent spa to get to the pool, we lounged by one of the pools for the afternoon.
For dinner, we ate at Gilley's barbecue restaurant at Treasure Island. The food was amazing. At night, we walked down the Strip to about Imperial Palace, and then back.
We woke up in our ridiculous Encore suite, ate lunch at Gilley's, checked out of the hotel, and then drove back to Salt Lake City.