User:Kiac/This Is War

Background
30 Seconds to Mars were sued for breach-of-contract by their record label, Virgin Records, in mid-2008. The label seeked $30 million in damages, claiming that the band had failed to produce three of the five records they were obligated to deliver under their 1999 contract with the now-defunct Immortal Records. In 2004, Virgin took over the contract. Leto responded some of the claims in the suit on the band's website and was coerced into dismissing rumors that they group had disbaned. He said the claims were ""ridiculously overblown" and "totally unrealistic", before stating "under California law, where we live and signed our deal, one cannot be bound to a contract for more than seven years." 30 Seconds to Mars had been contracted for nine years, so the band decided to excercise their "legal right to terminate our old, out-of-date contract, which, according to the law is null and void."

After a nearly a year of the lawsuit battle, the band announced on April 29, 2009 that the case had been settled. 30 Seconds to Mars decided to re-sign with EMI (the parent label of Virgin). Leto said the band had "resolved our differences with EMI" and the decision had been made because of "the willingness and enthusiasm by EMI to address our major concerns and issues, (and) the opportunity to return to work with a team so committed and passionate about Thirty Seconds to Mars". He said it was "the most challenging business obstacle that we've ever gone through as a band."

Upon completion of the record, Leto spoke of the troubles the band faced whilst working on This Is War; "We spent two years of our lives working on that record, and it was us against the world... There were times that it was overwhelming. Everything that was going on was brutal... It was a case of survival, to tell the truth."

Musical style and themes
Allmusic writer Stephen Thomas Erlewine acknowledged the band's progression since their last record; saying that "When they were mining a post-grunge or nu metal or emo vein, this was a liability, but now that they’ve shifted their music with the shifting times, adopting a hybrid of the Killers' retro new wave and My Chemical Romance's gothic prog, they've wound up with a sound that suits their stance." He also referred to the style as a "mix of synth rock, metal, and prog".

30 Seconds to Mars frontman Jared Leto described the record as a concept album, continuing to say "if this isn't, I'm not sure what is". He said the record was created in an "intense two-year period, where it felt like the whole world was falling apart and massive changes were going on. I think you can hear that in the sound of this album." Furthermore, he refused to to call the album a rock opera, "People seem OK with calling it 'a rock opera'... I would never say that though; the only thing I'm comfortable saying 'rock opera' about is Tommy by the Who. But it's very conceptual, about many spiritual things, and it really is simply who we are, who we've become."

Leto described the style as "much more electronic and experimental, with lots of vintage synths." Also mentioning that he had written lyrics about some themes he felt were missing from their previous work, such as optimism and sexuality.

30 Seconds To Mars take the approach that nothing is too big or too outlandish to try

Accordingly, while their previous album ‘A Beautiful Lie’ featured its share of over-dramatic moments, this time the band have blasted them into the stratosphere. The massive-sounding ‘Vox Populi’ is a prime example. A self-proclaimed call-to-arms, its feeling of all-conquering optimism ‘Kings And Queens’ is equally epic and euphoric ‘Night Of The Hunter’ is one of the album’s most dramatic efforts, but it avoids becoming just another full-on anthem by channelling dark 80s pop to brilliant effect. ‘Hurricane’ revels in moody space-pop

A self-proclaimed call-to-arms, its feeling of all-conquering optimism is boosted by the backing vocals of hordes of chanting fans specially recorded at various “summits” around the world. going to crazy lengths to find the order of Tibetan monks whose chant closes the album

http://www.billboard.com/#/news/30-seconds-to-mars-recruits-fans-for-war-1004045778.story

Promotion
Finished a US headline tour in support of the album in December 2009. Another headline tour set for March 2010. Leto says the shows the band’s been playing have been intimate, which allows for loads of fan interaction.

For the album, 30 Seconds to Mars was also keen on incorporating their fans. The LP’s artwork features portraits of 2,000 of the band’s devotees, and Leto vows to collect as many of the covers as he can.

Recording
During the recording of the disc, Leto and the band invited fans, members of what Leto calls “The Summit,” to contribute gang vocals.

“That was a way to do something interactive, something different and using the collective group as an instrument on the album, in the same way you’d used a horn section or strings,” Leto says. “We wanted to use a giant group of people, and it kind of grew from an idea of like, ‘Let’s get a group of people together in Los Angeles’ to ‘Let’s get a group of people around nine different countries around the world and then let’s do a digital version’ and it kept spiraling and getting bigger and bigger because it was an exciting place to create from, and it got much more experimental than just having people sing or clap or stomp. Having that interactive element in the songs, live, people know, they have their part and it’s insane.”

Gibber
Kanye West collaboration??? http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/04/20/30stms-jared-leto-on-working-with-kanye-west-its-slightly-more-than-unexpected/ http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/dec/06/thirty-seconds-mars-cd-review http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1610414/20090430/30_seconds_to_mars.jhtml http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1627733/20091207/30_seconds_to_mars.jhtml

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-ca-30-seconds-to-mars29-2009nov29,0,7437853.story

"One thing that I know is that this record is really the best that we can do. It's everything that we have inside of us. It's our complete commitment, it's our complete abandonment, our blood and our bones and our heart and our soul, and everything. Everything we have is in this record, so that's what we have to say. ... Regardless of what anyone thinks of the record, we made the record we set out to make. ... Who knows if anyone in the world will like it or not? That's to be determined."

"We were literally having to kill ourselves at times. I had it written on the wall: 'Kill yourself to finish.' There were no other options," Leto said. "So we did that. It was a time to redefine, rediscover, reinvent, reinvest in each other. We thought about this record in a very deep way, and it means a lot to us. ... Music can just be fun, but it can also do more, mean more, and that's just what it is for us, I suppose."

"We spent two years of our lives working on that record, and it was us against the world. We didn't have outside influence or help, we didn't have a label, we had us, betting the farm, and pushing ourselves," frontman Jared Leto sighed. "There were times that it was overwhelming. Everything that was going on was brutal, but there were beautiful moments as well. There was so many outside influences that were in conflict that working on the record was actually quite peaceful. It was a case of survival, to tell the truth."

The band has stated that it is a concept album; "It's safe to say it's a concept album — I mean, if this isn't, I'm not sure what is," frontman Jared Leto says.

"People seem OK with calling it 'a rock opera,' " Leto laughed. "I would never say that though; the only thing I'm comfortable saying 'rock opera' about is Tommy by the Who. But it's very conceptual, about many spiritual things, and it really is simply who we are, who we've become."

"There is nothing left. We gave it all to make this record," Leto sighed. "Every piece of us went into making it."

"One thing that I thought was missing from 30 Seconds to Mars was a sense of optimism, which I think you feel on songs on this record. 'Kings and Queens,' there's a triumphant feeling of the possibilities that we all have. 'This Is War,' you feel a confidence and a celebration, and even 'Closer to the Edge,' " Leto said. "[In the case of] 'Stranger in a Strange Land' ... the other thing I felt was missing was sexuality. And that's obviously a big part of all of our lives, and I thought it important to address some of that."