30 Seconds to Mars – This Is War

SteveK has given up on clever headlines

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30 Seconds to Mars – This Is War

It’s only natural that I would review this album for CONFRONT Magazine.  When we launched back in September of 2006, our first issue heavily featured 30 Seconds to Mars, their album ‘A Beautiful Lie’ and the Echelon, an army of militantly devoted and zealously loyal fans.

It’s been four long years since the release of the afore-mentioned album; during which time, the band has toured worldwide extensively, and front man/actor, Jared Leto – the mind behind the 30STM movement – has appeared in four movies, in addition to directing the band’s last 5 music videos – though under assumed names.  Also, a lawsuit threatened to derail the work being done on ‘This Is War’.

But finally, this week, 30STM has unleashed their third studio album.  Legions of the Mars Army are already going wild, as well they should.  The 12 tracks on this release are, arguably, some of the best music put out by this band since its self-titled debut in 2002. “This Is War”, its title track, being already featured in the ‘DragonAge: Origins’ videogame.

Part of what makes 30STM who they are, is that Jared Leto has both the tremendous ego of many artists and the enormous talent to match.  Every aspect of this album has been plotted and crafted out according to what seems to be a very elaborate design and though it’s hard to tell where deliberate design and serendipity meet on this one, the results are unquestionably amazing.

Take for example the repeated use of a choir of fans singing verses and choruses throughout the album; most especially on the first single, the anthemic “Kings and Queens”.  This fan-choir was gathered by the band in world-wide events called “summits” and can be heard throughout the record in one form or another.

Innovatively used are the very archetypal 1980s sounds, including New-Wave style electronics and drums, keyboards and synthesized audio samples.  The result is unlike either of their previous releases, and yet still manages to retain the qualities that are quintessential 30STM.  Also evoked in these tracks are Protest Anthem Rock, Arena Rock, and even Cock-Rock.  “Night of the Hunter” is the most invocative of the 80s sounds and styles, a masterful lead-out from the dramatic prelude/opener, “Escape”.

And it doesn’t stop there: the album is tied together through the use of similar chords, repeated lyrics and musical thematics that bind its concepts together.  A miniature suite is formed through the songs “Kings and Queens”, “This is War” and “100 Suns”, which work best when listened to straight through back to back; the last of which is a track that Leto has been working on for years.  The heartfelt ballad is one of the band’s best compositions.

I do have one small bone of contention, however.  Kanye West, a close personal friend of Jared’s, appears as a guest performer on “Hurricane”.  The over-modulated back-up vocals West provides are out of place in the song, thereby making it seem out of place on the album as a whole.  Had the song been produced according to the rest of the album, or had the rest of the album been produced in a similar manner to “Hurricane”, it would have been seamless.

That said, with a running time of just over an hour, this album also delivers your money’s worth.  But then, if you’re a new recruit or a seasoned veteran of the Mars Army, you don’t need me to tell you that, do you?

What can I say?  I’ve always liked 30 Seconds to Mars, but this is, truly, the first album of theirs to really impress me, to really blow me away.  If you’re reading this and you’re not a fan of 30STM, I recommend you pick up ‘This is War’.  If you’re reading this and you are a fan?  Well, I’ve preached to the choir.

30 Seconds to Mars: This is War

EMI

Steve’s Rating: 9.5/10