Sunset In July
by 311

Album: Universal Pulse (2011)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The first single from Omaha, Nebraska reggae rockers 311's 10th studio album, Universal Pulse, was inspired by the band's late evening summer gigs. It was first aired June 3, 2011 on Los Angeles radio station KROQ.
  • Singer-guitarist Nick Hexum explained the song's meaning to Spin magazine: "[It's] about how the more fun you have, the faster life flies by. Most nights in July we're on stage as the sun is setting. You can actually see the crowd losing their inhibitions as the daylight fades away. We get off on watching the crowd at our shows, which inspired the song's chorus. People in the first few rows look like they're in another dimension. Maybe they're high - but we like to think it's the power of music!"
  • Hexum told Spin he wrote the song "while speeding around Angeles National Forest. I would write a couple lines and then haul ass around mountain curves until the next line would come to me. It's a great way to write!"

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Loudon Wainwright III

Loudon Wainwright IIISongwriter Interviews

"Dead Skunk" became a stinker for Loudon when he felt pressure to make another hit - his latest songs deal with mortality, his son Rufus, and picking up poop.

Arrested For Your Art - The Story Of 2 Live Crew's "Obscene" Album

Arrested For Your Art - The Story Of 2 Live Crew's "Obscene" AlbumSong Writing

In the summer of 1990, you could get arrested for selling a 2 Live Crew album or performing their songs in Southern Florida. And that's exactly what happened.

Intentionally Atrocious

Intentionally AtrociousSong Writing

A selection of songs made to be terrible - some clearly achieved that goal.

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin Popoff

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin PopoffSong Writing

A talk with Martin Popoff about his latest book on Rush and how he assessed the thousands of albums he reviewed.

Deconstructing Doors Songs With The Author Of The Doors Examined

Deconstructing Doors Songs With The Author Of The Doors ExaminedSong Writing

Doors expert Jim Cherry, author of The Doors Examined, talks about some of their defining songs and exposes some Jim Morrison myths.

Roger McGuinn of The Byrds

Roger McGuinn of The ByrdsSongwriter Interviews

Roger reveals the songwriting formula Clive Davis told him, and if "Eight Miles High" is really about drugs.