Love, Lust, Faith + Dreams: An Album Eleven Years in the Making
I was a freshman in high school when I first heard the sound from the greatest influence on my life.
FUSE was on the TV, playing through the latest rock singles and I may or may not have been procrastinating doing my homework for that evening.
Nothing had really tickled my fancy when the television began to pump out a post-grunge, screamo, hard-rock sound. On the TV’s screen, four dudes in tuxedos were skateboarding around a completely empty hotel that reminded me a lot of The Shining.
Yet, it was the song’s break that truly struck a chord with me, “I tried to be someone else, But nothing seemed to change, I know now, this is who I really am inside.” To a young girl trying to figure who she was, and what she wanted to be, those words, coming from a band of longhaired, pasty-faced men, were like the northern star.
30 Seconds to Mars, had produced the best, most meaningful sound I had ever heard, and I needed their album right then and there. Not being of age to possess a driver’s license, my mother kindly ushered me to the nearest music store, where I purchased 30 Seconds to Mars’ first, self-titled record and sophomore album, A Beautiful Lie.
It has been eight years since I first heard 30 Seconds to Mars. They are now gearing up for the release of their fourth studio album, Love, Lust, Faith + Dreams, and I am now a junior in college.
As this band, comprised of Jared Leto (vocals, guitar), Shannon Leto (drums), and Tomo Milicivic (lead guitar), has progressed and grown, I have kept a close eye on them. My career goal is to one day work in the music industry, and I have learned so much from this band’s career path.
30 Seconds to Mars has trekked to the Artic circle, filmed in The People Republic of China, been in the Guinness Book of World Records, and has had their sound 
broadcasted throughout the entire universe.
While sifting through articles about their latest promo-savvy technique of launching “Up In The Air,” their freshest track into space, I came across a quote from Jared Leto that brought me back to my living room, eight years ago.
“Our new single has to do with getting to a point in your life where you’re ready to let go of the past, embrace change and become more of who you really are,” Jared Leto commented on the vibe of 30 Seconds to Mars’ latest track.
Over the years, 30 Seconds to Mars has gone from a hard-hitting, angry lyriced rock band, to a musical staple of progression and growth. With their latest album Love, Lust, Faith + Dreams, Jared Leto allowed influences from India and Europe to weave themselves into their sound.
The band now has a core sound that carries from album to album. Where guitars once wailed with angst, a mellower sound can be heard expressed with lyrics that 
are sung, not screamed, with a chorus of fans recorded from all over the world, in digital sessions called “Summits,” resounding in the background.
30 Seconds to Mars has progressed from slipping free VIP tickets into their CDs for lucky fans, to launching their single into orbit for every terrestrial and extraterrestrial being to hear.
I can’t say if their latest piece of work is better than their previous, but I can say this, 30 Seconds to Mars is here to stay. Jared Leto has lent his creative genius to the band’s latest single “Up In The Air,” adding just a bit more electronic sound than fans have come to expect. As musical artists Jared Leto, Shannon Leto, and Milicivic have grown over the years and have created a name for themselves in the music industry.
Who knows? Maybe by 30 Seconds to Mars’ fifth album, that high school freshman will be working with her greatest idol.
