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The fact 311 is still together after nearly two decades makes a statement on the here today, gone tomorrow nature of rock bands.

The group's togetherness is as much a testimony to its members' musical like-mindedness - the band's sound incorporates metal with reggae and rap - as their ability to overcome the inevitable squabbles and "artistic" differences.

"It's a joy to be with guys who test my view of how I see things," says bassist Aaron "P-Nut" Wills. "I get outvoted and they get outvoted, and we all learn from it. We all love working with each other."

The band, which appears with Slightly Stoopid on Saturday, Nov. 21, at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, is touring behind its ninth studio release, "Uplifter" (Volcano/ Jive Records).

The album, put together at The Hive, a North Hollywood, Calif., recording studio owned by the group, brought 311 together for the first time with producer Bob Rock (Metallica, Bon Jovi, Aerosmith). Although the members initially worked individually or in pairs on the material, the final tracks are very much a joint effort.

"For myself, collaboration just seems like a better way of getting things out there," Wills says. "It's nice to bounce ideas off people. I like learning like that and testing my ego with ‘How do you like this? How does this sound? Let's turn it into something else.'

"Erasing is a great thing - It's almost as creative as creating. You can let it breathe and allow space for new ideas."

The collaborative process wasn't confined to the studio, either. The bridge from "It's Alright" originated during a jam session held at veteran funk bassist Bootsy Collins' house, a regular musical gathering spot whenever the band stops in Cincinnati.

"It's so much fun to play musical nonsense for three hours," Wills says. "Through this nonsense, you come up with great work. I can't sit down and say, ‘I'm going to write music.' I need to play it out like I'm back in the garage when I was 15."

Having come of age long before the iPod made singles trendy again, 311 has adhered to its album-oriented perspective on music making.

"It's a cohesive thing for sure, since we grew up making albums like that," Wills says. "I think more and more for (listeners) it's, ‘I like this song and this song and that's all I want to listen to.'"

For Wills the music fan, some of his most cherished records are sets that required repeat listening before he fully appreciated them.

"New information is always a test - I love that," he says. "Some of my favorite albums are ones I didn't like immediately off the bat."

One thing that has changed over the years is the amount of time 311 logs on the road. In its early years, the band toured nonstop.

"I think it was a good thing for us to tour so much in the beginning. It allowed us to get used to that life and the relationships outside the band had to adjust accordingly," Wills says.

Today, regular time off gives the band a chance to recharge, both personally and artistically.

"Most band's first albums are songs they wrote for 15 years - all this rich information," Wills says. "Touring so much and going in the studio and expecting you to come up with new ideas isn't going to work unless you take breaks and live your life."

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