30 Seconds To Mars
Musician's attempts at acting rarely work. Actors playing music fares only slightly better. When a person spends the emotional and creative energy to master acting there is little left for anything else. On the other hand, all actors, even the most successful, have recurring spells of unemployment. They can either tear up Hollywood and wind up on the cover of the gossip rags or fill their time more productively.
Jared Leto has a pretty impressive list of film credits including Requiem For Dream, Panic Room, Fight Club (with Brad Pitt), American Psycho and Alexander (with Pitt again). He has another notable accomplishment: the founder and leader of 30 Seconds To Mars.
Leto wrote and recorded 30 Seconds To Mars' '02 self-titled debut using only his brother, Shannon, on drums. In order to tour, the Leto brothers added guitarist Tomo Milicevic and bassist Matt Wachter. The latter two eventually became band members and worked on the group's sophomore effort "A Beautiful Lie," containing the hit, "The Kill."
30 Seconds To Mars' self-titled debut could be dismissed as a vanity project. "Fallen" has the line, "yeah, I have been to Jupiter," sung with breathy seriousness.
Given the group's name it's not surprising there are cosmic references. Check the song titles: "Edge Of Earth," "Welcome To The Universe" and "3 Million Miles" (the distance the earth is from the sun).
The album is disjointed in places but does manage to focus occasionally and produce some engaging songs: "Edge Of Earth," "The Mission" and Year Zero."
Everything that is attempted on the debut is better executed on "A Beautiful Lie" which charts a leaner more direct course. Written while on tour, Leto reportedly composed over 40 songs before deciding on the final set. There's the arena Rock oriented "The Kill," the powerful "Attack" and the somber "Was It A Dream." "The Fantasy" and "Savior" also connect
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