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Sweaty fans give 311 a 10 at Omaha's 150th
BY NIZ PROSKOCIL AND TIM ELFRINK
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
A huge handmade poster spotted at 311's concert Friday night summed it
up fittingly: "We'll Follow U Anywhere!"
Music fans came from Chicago and across the street to see rock band and
Omaha natives 311 tear it up at Memorial Park.
Between 25,000 and 30,000 fans packed the park near 60th and Dodge
Streets for the free concert, part of a three-day celebration to mark
Omaha's 150th birthday.
Rachel Carmichael and Amy Corona arrived at 6:30 a.m. to stake out a
spot near the front of the stage. The women, both in their mid-20s,
drove from Chicago to see their favorite band, 311.
Like other fans who arrived early to claim prime viewing spots, the
Chicagoans spent the day lounging on lawn chairs, soaking up the sun,
reading magazines and chatting with other early-bird arrivals.
Carmichael wore a T-shirt that read "Nick Is My Rock God," referring to
311's lead singer and guitarist, Nick Hexum.
"Nick is what inspires me to be positive," she gushed. "I would do
about anything for him."
And that includes proudly showing off the 311-inspired tattoo near her
rear end.
Though Carmichael has been to six 311 concerts, she did not want to
pass up a chance to see the band play a free show in its hometown.
Shortly after 6 p.m., Hexum's younger brother, Zack, kicked off the
night with a set of tunes from his debut album. His set was followed by
music from Omaha rock band Grasshopper Takeover.
Though fans clapped enthusiastically for the opening performers, it was
clearly 311 they wanted to see. While waiting for the band to take the
stage, some fans chanted "Three-eleven! Three-eleven!"
After a brief introduction by Mayor Mike Fahey, the hometown heroes,
now based in Los Angeles, took the stage at 8 p.m. and the crowd
erupted in cheers and applause.
"It's a perfect summer night for a concert in the park," Nick Hexum
told the crowd before 311 launched into "Come Original" from 1999's "Soundsystem"
album.
Throughout the band's two-hour set, Hexum - wearing a red Nebraska
T-shirt - and his bandmates worked the crowd into a sweaty frenzy. Fans
danced, jumped up and down and crowd-surfed to 311's music, a blend of
rock, rap, funk and reggae.
The band's set included such tunes as "Rub a Dub," "All Mixed Up" and
the recent No. 1 hit single, "Love Song."
Though the concert attracted mainly teens and twentysomethings, there
was a mixture of people from all walks - businessmen, babies and baby
boomers.
"I think it's a great party atmosphere," said 48-year-old music fan
Ricky Fulton of Omaha. "This band here is an example of some of the
great talent we have in Omaha."
Fulton's wife, Mary, said she also was enjoying the festive atmosphere.
"If I was a little younger, I'd be down there dancing," she said while
standing near the park's monument up the hill from the stage. "It's
more of a free-for-all down there."
Omaha Police Lt. Tim Conahan said two or three people were arrested for
fighting with security guards around the stage, and police dealt with a
half-dozen "extremely drunk" concertgoers.
It was a hectic but bearable night at the Red Cross tent a few hundred
feet from the stage, said Red Cross worker Nicole Fuller.
Fuller estimated that medics in the tent had treated about 100 people
by the end of the concert at 10 p.m.
Most suffered from heat-related problems early in the evening when the
sun was still hot. By the end of the show, Fuller said, medics had
treated at least as many with minor injuries from being in the huge
crowd.
At least two people were taken to the hospital, one with heat
exhaustion and one with an ankle injury, said Fuller, adding that
neither problem seemed serious.
While his parents kept their distance up the hill, 18-year-old Joel
Fulton braved the throngs of concertgoers dancing near the stage.
"It's great," Fulton said. "Everyone's here to see the band that grew
up in Omaha."
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