[MUSIC] THE SAVAGE ANIMAL "The Videography of 30 Seconds To Mars"
02.22.12
BY MIKEY MIGO
I’ve never claimed to be a fan of 30 Seconds to Mars. In fact, part of my younger folklore involved shouting the random, yes random, phrase “Chew My Foreskin!” at a very new electro-rock band called 30 Seconds to Mars. It was a Sevendust show in the Chicagoland area. I don’t know what came over me, but I was there to rock and not listen to synth rock. By the way, the story ends with the crowd erupting with laughter and the band not finishing. For a while there I had a mission to shout the random, yes random, phrase to the rest of that years “50 Most Beautiful People”.
That’s not the point. The point is that I did feel bad and did end up buying 30 Seconds to Mars first CD. I dug it. I know at the Sevendust concert I was ready to rock, but the truth is that I love industrial and new wave. The time and the place was just off. I now know that newer bands have to take the tours they can get and sometimes they’re stuck on bills that might not have the best of crossovers. I think that’s what happened there. This CD was pretty good. Nothing really grabbed me or moved me, but it was a solid album that I did enjoy. My problem is that the band’s style changed completely after this album. They went the pop-emo-punk-whiney-rock route. They became a band that I not only disliked, but would put on a totally unfair and irrational (but honest) level of “you’re not cool if you listen to THIS band”.
I liked the music, the tone, the imagery, the care for production and art. My main problem was the whiney vocals. It’s not that I can’t handle a little sadness or anything. I mean I DO love me some Nine Inch Nails and I grew up on Smashing Pumpkins. Those artists prove that a “strained soul” doesn’t have so sound like an entire genre that have been proven to be disposable. Maybe that’s my problem. I didn’t like the way they quickly evolved (sold out?) in a direction I wasn’t a fan of. It’s that wasted potential of sounding just like everyone else.
All of that said, they put out some interesting videos. With Jared Leto’s background in film it’s cool they showed that much care in their videos. Today I’m going to watch the ten music videos of 30 Seconds to Mars. I’m watching for the visual art, but I’m optimistic I’ll find something of value in the music as well.
Track: "Capricorn (A Brand New Name)"
Album: ”30 Seconds to Mars”
Year: 2002
Director: Paul Fedor
I really don’t remember this video, but I’m pretty sure I had to have seen it. We see a little boy listening to the ground and hearing something stirring beneath it. Then a lot of people show up and start digging. This is cut with shots of the band playing in a old-timey warehouse looking spot. The craftsmanship of the video is nice, but nothing special is happening here. It’s a really forgettable video, but one of the better songs of the band from what I can recall. Rating: 6.0
Track: "Edge of the Earth"
Album: ”30 Seconds to Mars”
Year: 2003
Director: Kevin McCullough
This is a live, “on the road”, candid, concert video. They call it a lot of different things, but it’s the same thing. It’s a collage of road stuff. Sometimes it’s done in a way where it’s artistic and interesting. In this case, I don’t really feel like it “works”. It feels like a DVD extra or a video EPK or something more supplemental than an official music video. Rating: 4.0
Track: "Attack"
Album: ”A Beautiful Lie”
Year: 2005
Director: Paul Fedor
This was the first video off the album that put the band on the map. You can clearly hear a “different sound” here compared to the first album. The video production increased too though. This video is pretty decent. At first you think it’s a normal performance video, but the weird scratchy edits, the lines, and the different cuts make for a really solid rock video. It’s not reinventing the wheel or anything, but the energy in the edit works well. Rating: 7.0
Track: "The Kill"
Album: ”A Beautiful Lie”
Year: 2006
Director: Batholomew Cubbins
Ah ha! This is the video I remember the most. The video starts off with a little preface about the band going to this weird isolated hotel to veg out and I suppose record. They are left a cryptic note to avoid a certain room. Of course they’ll approach it. We get cuts of the band performing on an auditorium looking stage mixed in with the story. Each band member goes to the room and gets a weird mind-fuck. It’s pretty creative and has way more substance than I remembered. Maybe today’s videos are just that bad. I don’t like the song at all, but I have to give this video proper credit. Rating: 8.5
Track: "From Yesterday"
Album: ”A Beautiful Lie”
Year: 2006
Director: Batholomew Cubbins
I remember seeing the condensed version of this video and being really annoyed by it. Now I find myself sitting here for a thirteen minute extended cut. Basically from what I gather, the band is called upon by the little boy from “The Golden Child” to come to his land and to glare sexily into cameras and to transform themselves into emo ninjas. I can’t take this video serious at all. It’s well shot and well done. I’d expect at least this much with Leto’s film connections and the band’s major label backing. The narrative and story here just sucked. I wanted to like it, I swear. Can anyone explain to me, without being a dick, what is going on here and why is it in this theme? Thirteen minutes! Rating: 6.0
Track: "A Beautiful Lie "
Album: ”A Beautiful Lie”
Year: 2008
Director: Angakok Panipaq
The video starts off flaming. No pun intended. We are shown dramatic photos of what I believe are Eskimos. Apparently this video has an Artic and ice theme to it. It looks really good and the swooping shots of the ice and what not is beautiful. Nothing else really happens. Rating: 6.0
Track: "Kings and Queens"
Album: ”This Is War”
Year: 2009
Director: Batholomew Cubbins
For some reason, I don’t remember this video at all. The band performs in front of a sun set as a whole bunch of people on bikes ride though a city. It’s a great looking video, like the others. But also like the others, it goes nowhere. It’s fun to look at it, but I’m not exactly having my mind blown. Rating: 6.0
Track: "Closer to the Edge"
Album: ”This Is War”
Year: 2010
Director: Batholomew Cubbins
We are treated to a whole bunch of feel-good freak quotes and it goes into a live video. It’s A LOT better than their second video. The crowds at their shows are pretty damn big. I knew they were popular, but I didn’t think they were that big. The song, the kid testimonials, the words popping up all over, and the cuts remind me of something seen in between episodes on Disney or Nickelodeon. This felt really clean and artificial. Rating: 7.0
Track: "Hurricane"
Album: ”This Is War”
Year: 2010
Director: Batholomew Cubbins
Another thirteen minute video? Yeesh. Off the bat, it’s pretty cool. The shots, the direction, and everything seems spot on. It’s good shit. And then we get to the story about a minute or two in. Leto is being stalked by a bondage business man. He jumps out of his high rise hotel and lands on his feet. More and more of weird surreal stuff like this would happen. It’s trippy and intense, but not gritty enough to have a lasting effect. As a filmmaking project, this is a great thing. Its connection to the song and the tone isn’t my cup of tea. Cubbins deserves a ton of respect for this project. The song sucks though. Rating: 8.5
Track: "This Is War"
Album: ”This Is War”
Year: 2011
Director: Édouard Salier
I almost forgot about this song. The video depicts Leto and the guys as members of the military. They cut it up with shots of real war and political figures. They get into a shoot out with… aliens? Transformers? A tornado? Gravity? The Predator? I have no idea. The effects are cooler than most movies I’ve seen lately. This would have been the story and theme I’d like to have seen a thirteen minute video of. Rating: 8.0
VERDICT
It turns out I wasn’t being a close minded asshole. I just REALLY didn’t like 30 Seconds to Mars. I was fair about it though. I gave them an honest chance here. I wanted my mind to be blown and a connection to be made. I still couldn’t get pass the crazy sound shift/sell out? In between the first album and the rest. A preachy emo-rock band just wasn’t something that was connect with me. I still like Leto’s acting and I respect his art. I didn’t really get into the videos all that much, but I like what they were attempting. The videos have a cinematic feel to them. They feel more special than a standard rock and roll video. While I think some of the themes were lame, just the idea that they actually had themes is cool. You don’t see this kind of effort and creative energy put into music videos that often. In a perfect world I’d like this music and the videos, but the truth is that in this band’s case their music videos are better than their music.
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