The band's debut album, 30 Seconds to Mars (2002), was produced by Bob Ezrin and released to positive reviews but only to limited commercial success. The band achieved worldwide fame with the release of its second album A Beautiful Lie (2005), which received multiple certifications all over the world. Its next release, This Is War (2009), showed a dramatic evolution in the band's musical style, as it incorporated experimental music as well as eclectic influences. The recording process of the album was marked by a legal dispute with record label EMI that eventually became the subject of the documentary film Artifact (2012). Thirty Seconds to Mars then moved to Universal Music and released the fourth album, Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (2013), to critical and commercial success. It was followed by America (2018), which polarized critics upon release. Their newest, It's the End of the World but It's a Beautiful Day, released on September 15, 2023.
As of September 2014, the band had sold over 15 million albums worldwide. Thirty Seconds to Mars has consistently enjoyed sold out tours and numerous headlining festival slots. The band is noted for its energetic live performances and for fusing elements from a wide variety of genres, through its use of philosophical and spiritual lyrics, concept albums, and experimental music. Thirty Seconds to Mars has received several awards and accolades throughout its career, including a Guinness World Record, and has been included in the Kerrang! list of best artists of the 2000s.
Band's Logo
The band's phoenix logo.The band's phoenix logo (which the band named "Mithra") bears the phrase "Provehito in Altum", the band's motto, roughly translated from Latin as "Launch forth into the deep", but a more stylized version would be "Rocket in(to) High(ness)" or "March The Skies". The logo was primarily used for promotion of the band's debut, whereas for A Beautiful Lie, the new Trinity logo was created consisting of three skulls, along with the band's name and motto. For This Is War, the band has adopted the alchemical symbol for air, continuing on the sky/air theme.
The Echelon
The Echelon is a publicity street team for the band 30 Seconds to Mars, which helps in bringing friends to the shows, phoning local radio stations to request the band's songs, putting up posters, posting to band forums or related bulletin boards online, voting for the band in official award nominations and maintaining magazines or websites dedicated to the band. It is also the name of one of their songs in the album 30 Seconds to Mars.
Studio albums:
30 Seconds to Mars - 2002
Their debut self-titled album, 30 Seconds to Mars, released on August 27, 2002 in the United States through Immortal and Virgin. Jared Leto described the record as a concept album that focuses on human struggle and self-determination, in which otherworldly elements and conceptual ideas are used to illustrate a truthful personal situation. The album reached #107 on the US Billboard 200 and number one on the US Top Heatseekers, selling 121,000 copies in the United States alone. It was preceded by the single "Capricorn (A Brand New Name)", which peaked at number 31 on the US Mainstream Rock chart and entered the top ten of the UK Rock Chart. Upon its release, 30 Seconds to Mars was met with mostly positive reviews; a critic felt that the band has "managed to carve out a unique niche for themselves in the rock realm." Although the album was a slow-burning success, it eventually sold two million copies worldwide as of March 2011.
A Beautiful Lie - 2005
A Beautiful Lie was released on August 30, 2005 in the United States. Because the album was leaked five months before its release, the band decided to include two bonus tracks: "Battle of One" (an original song that was also set to be the album's title track when it was first announced) and "Hunter" (a cover of the Björk song).
It has since been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and has reached platinum and gold status in several countries, with a sales total of over four million. It was led by "Attack", which made its radio debut on June 6, 2005 and became the most added track on American modern rock radio during its first week of release.
During 2005, Thirty Seconds to Mars released the album's second single, "The Kill", which set a record for the longest-running hit in the history of the US Modern Rock chart when it remained on the national chart for more than 50 weeks, following its number three peak in 2006. Its music video, directed by Jared Leto under the pseudonym of Bartholomew Cubbins, received a largely positive response and numerous accolades, including an MTV Video Music Award.
This Is War - 2009
This is War released through Virgin Records and EMI on December 8, 2009. Upon its release, it peaked at #18 on the Billboard 200.
Leto described the style as "much more electronic and experimental, with lots of vintage synths." Leto also mentioned that he had written lyrics about some themes he felt were missing from their previous work, such as optimism and sexuality only for the song "Stranger in a Strange Land".
The music video for the song "Hurricane" was banned by MTV and several other TV channels around the world. The video, which runs for 13 minutes and 10 seconds and was directed by Jared Leto under the pseudonym Bartholomew Cubbin, premiered on MTV on November 29, 2010. The video was censored and banned because of its elements of violence, nudity and sex. On November 28, 2010, Jared Leto posted the letter from MTV about the censorship of the video on his blog. The list features the offending scenes, such as a woman running her finger on the anus of another G-string woman, which was classified as "restricted". It was only this shot which had made the video completely restricted.
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams - 2013
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (stylized as LOVE LUST FAITH + DREAMS) was released through Virgin Records on May 17, 2013. Upon release, peaked #6 on the Billboard 200 and sold 52,000 copies in its first week of release.
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams is a concept album revolving around the themes after which the album is named. The album is divided into four segments, each named Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams, with the beginning of each segment declared by a female voice proclaiming the name of the segment before the beginning of a song or at the end of an interlude which introduces the next segment of the album.
A more specific album concept can be seen inside the CD. It is recognized by four colors, with the color red standing for Love, yellow for Lust, green for Faith, and blue for Dreams. LOVE contains "Birth" and "Conquistador". LUST contains "Up in the Air", "City of Angels", "The Race", "End of All Days" and "Pyres of Varanasi". FAITH contains "Bright Lights", "Do or Die" and "Convergence". DREAMS contains "Northern Lights", and "Depuis Le Début".
"Up in the Air" was released as the lead single from Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams on March 19, 2013. A CD copy of the single was sent to NASA and SpaceX for launch aboard the Dragon spacecraft on SpaceX CRS-2. The mission was launched atop a Falcon 9 rocket on March 1, 2013, sending the first ever commercial copy of music into space. The spacecraft berthed and docked with the International Space Station on March 3, 2013, making the single available to play by the Expedition 35 crew aboard the station. The song made its worldwide debut aboard the station on March 18, 2013 and was released as a Digital download single on iTunes the next day. The music video was released on April 19, 2013 worldwide on Vevo.
"City of Angels" was sent to US Modern rock radio as a promotional single from Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams on July 23, 2013. A music video for "City of Angels", featuring Bartholomew Cubbins as director, was released onto YouTube on October 29, 2013. It was shot over two days on August 18 and 19, 2013, in Los Angeles, California.
"Do or Die" was released as a promotional single from Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams on September 9, 2013 in Europe. During the Summer European Tour, Jared confirmed the band was recording footage for a live video for the song. The music video was released on August 5, 2013 worldwide on Vevo.
Dangerous Night
30 Seconds to Mars Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But the memories left are still haunting
The walls that we built from bottles and pills
We swallow until we're not talking
I... I am a man on fire
You... a violent desire
Don't know why we still hide what we've beco-o-ome (oh, oh)
Do you wanna cross the line?
We're runnin' out of time
A dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove
Started a stranger, a lover in danger
The edge of a knife
The face of an angel, the heart of a ghost
Was it a dream?
I... I am a man on fire
You... a violent desire
What a dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove
Don't know why we still hide what we've beco-o-ome (oh, oh)
Do you wanna cross the line?
We're runnin' out of time
A dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove (oh, oh)
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
I... I am a man on fire
Fire, fire, fire, fire
You... a violent desire
A dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove
A dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove
Do you wanna cross the line?
We're runnin' out of time
A dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove (oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
A dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove (oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
A dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove (oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
The lyrics to 30 Seconds to Mars's song Dangerous Night speak to the difficulties of moving on from someone who has left a significant mark on one's life. The first verse suggests that the singer and their past lover have gone through some intense experiences together, including pain and suffering, which they now try to forget. Nevertheless, these memories continue to haunt them despite their attempts to suppress them. The second verse seems to describe how the relationship began, with the singer starting as a stranger and their lover in danger. This person may have represented danger because they were already in a relationship, with the singer playing the role of the other person, but it could also suggest that the person the singer fell in love with was themselves dangerous to be around.
The chorus describes the current situation, with the singer acknowledging that falling in love again with this person is a dangerous proposition, but one that they are still exploring. The line "Do you wanna cross the line?" suggests that the other person is hesitant about continuing the relationship, or perhaps it is the singer who is hesitant. The last line of the chorus, "We're running out of time," implies a sense of urgency, which heightens the tension in the song. Ultimately, the lyrics convey a sense of longing, desire, and danger that comes with trying to reignite a flame with an old lover.
Line by Line Meaning
We burned and we bled, we try to forget
We've been through tough times and painful experiences that we're trying to erase from our memories.
But the memories left are still haunting
Despite our efforts to forget, our memories still linger and affect us in profound ways.
The walls that we built from bottles and pills
We've built emotional barriers around ourselves using drugs and alcohol.
We swallow until we're not talking
We self-medicate to the point where we can no longer communicate or express ourselves effectively.
I... I am a man on fire
The artist is consumed by passion and desire.
You... a violent desire
The object of the singer's affection is also filled with intense longing and passion.
What a dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove
The atmosphere is charged with risk and excitement, heightening the danger and thrill of falling in love.
Don't know why we still hide what we've beco-o-ome (oh, oh)
Despite their feelings for each other, they are still keeping parts of themselves hidden from each other.
Do you wanna cross the line?
The artist is asking if the other person is willing to take a risk and pursue their feelings, even if it means crossing boundaries.
We're runnin' out of time
There is a sense of urgency, as they feel like time is running out to share their feelings or make a move.
Started a stranger, a lover in danger
Their relationship started off unfamiliar and risky, and it only becomes more dangerous as they become more entangled with each other.
The edge of a knife
Their love is perilous and on the brink, as if they're balancing on the sharp edge of a knife.
The face of an angel, the heart of a ghost
Their appearance and behavior may seem angelic, but emotionally they're ghost-like - distant and unable to fully connect.
Was it a dream?
The singer questions if their feelings and experiences are even real, or if it's all just a dream-like fantasy.
Fire, fire, fire, fire
The passion and desire is burning hot and intense.
A dangerous night to fall in lo-o-ove
The danger and excitement of their relationship only grows stronger as the night goes on.
Contributed by Brody C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Evolved Specter
This song is so under appreciated. It deserves way more attention
Joe!
Me too
chiara perino
I totaly agree with you
Artsy As It Comes
totaly
Artsy As It Comes
uh, duh
Brodycat212
Agreed
JadocK
listens at normal speed: ehh, this is pretty good.
listens at 1.25 speed: HOLY SH*T
mythical dragon
Omg 🤣
Brodycat212
@Dưa Leo I LOVE Beat Saber
Wejdan Consicence
@SlytherinGirl 131 That what nightmares are made from 🤣