30 Seconds to Mars attacks!
When 30 Seconds to Mars debuted in 2002 with its self-titled CD, more than a few people probably thought the band would turn into another Dogstar (fronted by Keanu Reeves), Juliette and The Licks (with Juliette Lewis) or Bruce Willis and The Accelerators.
Those bands all featured established actors. And all failed commercially.
But with the release of the new 30 Seconds to Mars CD, "A Beautiful Lie" -- and the success that came with the CD's Top 5 modern rock hits "The Kill (Bury Me)" and "From Yesterday" -- it's looking like 30 Seconds to Mars will become a legitimate, long-term pursuit for frontman Jared Leto.
Leto, whose acting credits include parts in "Panic Room," "Fight Club" and "Alexander," is fully dedicated to the band and his acting career, according to his brother and 30 Seconds to Mars drummer Shannon Leto.
"He'll take the time to do both," he said. "He's an artist, and he does what he does. He doesn't make excuses for what he does. And it all just worked out. There's time for him to do movies and there's time for him to do music, and I respect it."
The band's self-titled debut was mostly recorded just by the Leto brothers, with occasional contributions from outside musicians. But it became a four-piece for touring purposes with the addition of guitarist Tomo Milicevic and bassist Matt Wachter. And when work began on "A Beautiful Lie," the newcomers were encouraged to become fully involved in the songwriting and arranging.
It wasn't an easy process.
"We're all artists," Shannon Leto said. "We all have a voice, and we want our voices to be heard. So you learn to communicate for it to work out. You learn to hear each other, and you learn to listen and to be open and willing to (hear) peoples' criticisms and ideas. And that's challenging in the beginning. But through time, you all learn, you have a common goal."
The material from both CDs is getting a chance to evolve again as 30 Seconds to Mars returns to the road on the Rockstar Energy Drink Taste of Chaos Tour, coming Sunday to the USF Sun Dome in Tampa.
"We're going to do some old stuff. We're going to do some new stuff," Shannon Leto said. "There are some surprises that we're coming up with that we always like ... so everybody's going to be really excited to see what happens, because we have some great, great little treats coming up."
Shannon Leto said he and his bandmates try to turn each show into an event fans won't soon forget when they walk out of the venue. "I can't tell you what types of things we have going on, but I can tell you we want to make an experience," he said.
"We want to share our emotions and the emotions of the crowd that's listening ... we want to be spontaneous. We want to be impulsive and have that excitement night after night."
Taste of Chaos Tour 30 Second to Mars, with The Used, Senses Fail, Saosin, Evaline, Aiden and Chiodos. 5 p.m. Sunday. USF Sun Dome, 4202 E. Fowler Ave., Tampa. $30.75 advance; $33.75 day of show. (727) 898-2100 www.ticketmaster.com