30 Seconds to Mars
Mar. 5th, 2010 03:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
savage_midnightI completely forgot to mention the 30 Seconds to Mars gig!
Last time I went to see them, back in 2008, they weren't as big over here (they didn't have any singles in the chart and I don't think A Beautiful Lie charted at all. They played mostly uni gigs so back then it was a smaller venue.
Now that they're a bit more well-known over here in England, their venues are getting bigger. I was a little worried that it would lose the intimate atmosphere that the first gig had, but it definitely didn't.
The show was amazing. I love this band because they carry so well during live performances. In fact, I tend to favour the live gigs over their CDs because Jared Leto's voice is a lot grittier and raw than you get to hear on the albums.
Mostly I enjoy their gigs because they keep things pretty simple. The sets aren't extravagant, there's nothing there to try and distract the audience from the actual performance. Some bands tend to do this to disguise the fact that they're not that impressive live. But 30STM, more specifically Jared Leto (the other band members tend to just do their thing and be awesome), knows how to work the crowd and build up an atmosphere.
Jared also did a little acoustic session like he did last time, which I love. His solo songs on the album are some of my least favourite, mostly because they're too slow and bland for my tastes. But live... God, his voice. I'm not a huge Jared fangirl really. A Jordan Catalano fangirl maybe, but as a person he's just this guy who's in a band I like. But when he sings I go squishy.
The band are very interactive with the audience. They were the first time I saw them and they were this time. Jared did his acoustic bit in the stalls. The band did a few numbers on a smaller stage near the back of the venue so people who couldn't get near the front could get involved. He bought people up on stage to sing back-up for a few songs. He talked a lot. Gushed about England a lot. Was a total cheeseball (and he acknowledged as much) and was just actually pretty modest. I don't think they really care that they're a pop-rock band who are mocked constantly by those I like to refer to as Music Snobs. They just love what they do.
The support acts were pretty cool. The first band (I can't remember their name) were not that impressive, but after they had a group on called the Drum Street Corps, and they were amazing. They're a small group who use whatever they can find as instruments and they're very intense. The final support act were good, but the lead singer was very much a Jared Leto wannabe (the hair, the clothes, just his general appearance) crossed with Austin Powers. There was a lot of crotch thrusting, which I didn't need to see, and doing dirty things with the microphone wire, which... ew. Jared is a lead, sure, but he's mostly just, "Hey, I'm just a dude who sings in a band." This guy thought he was a Rock God and he came off more like a washed-out porn star.
So yes, amazing gig. They played a pretty good set, around eighteen-or-so songs. They did a few from A Beautiful Lie but none from their first album (no Buddha for Mary for me).
Now to be quite honest I'm not crazy about the new album. There's a few solid tunes on there, but I find it a little samey. But another reason I love seeing these guys live is that suddenly pretty much every song becomes a full-body experience.
So I came home from Nottingham very battered and bruised but very, very satisfied. I love live music and I love a good gig, because it's like one night of going bat-shit crazy insane loosens me up and puts me in a seriously good mood.
Last time I went to see them, back in 2008, they weren't as big over here (they didn't have any singles in the chart and I don't think A Beautiful Lie charted at all. They played mostly uni gigs so back then it was a smaller venue.
Now that they're a bit more well-known over here in England, their venues are getting bigger. I was a little worried that it would lose the intimate atmosphere that the first gig had, but it definitely didn't.
The show was amazing. I love this band because they carry so well during live performances. In fact, I tend to favour the live gigs over their CDs because Jared Leto's voice is a lot grittier and raw than you get to hear on the albums.
Mostly I enjoy their gigs because they keep things pretty simple. The sets aren't extravagant, there's nothing there to try and distract the audience from the actual performance. Some bands tend to do this to disguise the fact that they're not that impressive live. But 30STM, more specifically Jared Leto (the other band members tend to just do their thing and be awesome), knows how to work the crowd and build up an atmosphere.
Jared also did a little acoustic session like he did last time, which I love. His solo songs on the album are some of my least favourite, mostly because they're too slow and bland for my tastes. But live... God, his voice. I'm not a huge Jared fangirl really. A Jordan Catalano fangirl maybe, but as a person he's just this guy who's in a band I like. But when he sings I go squishy.
The band are very interactive with the audience. They were the first time I saw them and they were this time. Jared did his acoustic bit in the stalls. The band did a few numbers on a smaller stage near the back of the venue so people who couldn't get near the front could get involved. He bought people up on stage to sing back-up for a few songs. He talked a lot. Gushed about England a lot. Was a total cheeseball (and he acknowledged as much) and was just actually pretty modest. I don't think they really care that they're a pop-rock band who are mocked constantly by those I like to refer to as Music Snobs. They just love what they do.
The support acts were pretty cool. The first band (I can't remember their name) were not that impressive, but after they had a group on called the Drum Street Corps, and they were amazing. They're a small group who use whatever they can find as instruments and they're very intense. The final support act were good, but the lead singer was very much a Jared Leto wannabe (the hair, the clothes, just his general appearance) crossed with Austin Powers. There was a lot of crotch thrusting, which I didn't need to see, and doing dirty things with the microphone wire, which... ew. Jared is a lead, sure, but he's mostly just, "Hey, I'm just a dude who sings in a band." This guy thought he was a Rock God and he came off more like a washed-out porn star.
So yes, amazing gig. They played a pretty good set, around eighteen-or-so songs. They did a few from A Beautiful Lie but none from their first album (no Buddha for Mary for me).
Now to be quite honest I'm not crazy about the new album. There's a few solid tunes on there, but I find it a little samey. But another reason I love seeing these guys live is that suddenly pretty much every song becomes a full-body experience.
So I came home from Nottingham very battered and bruised but very, very satisfied. I love live music and I love a good gig, because it's like one night of going bat-shit crazy insane loosens me up and puts me in a seriously good mood.