RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo

30 SECONDS TO MARS - A CLASS ACT
WORDS: Andrew Kelham/PHOTOS: Nigel Crane

ROCK SOUND catches up with 30 Seconds To Mars ahead of their biggest UK tour to date. Turns out they don't like everything about Blighty...
Jared Leto, 30
Seconds To Mars' frontman, is in Switzerland spending 10 hours a day in
latex. Rock Sound is assured this has nothing to do with any bizarre
sexual fetishes, rather that it is simply due to the requirements of
his lastest filming project. Due to his extensive time in make-up
having aforesaid synthetic product applied he will not be able to talk
to us, instead guitarist Tomo Milicevic and drummer Shannon Leto give
us the inside track on the bands's phenomenal growth.
GIVEN HOW WELL THINGS ARE GOING FOR YOU AT THE MOMENT, WHY DID YOU WAIT SO LONG TO START TOURING THE UK?
Tomo: "Good
question, but had we come earlier would any of this good stuff happen?
I honestly do not know why it took us so long. I know we were dead-set
on breaking in America - it was so hard for so long, but we knew we had
a good record and we knew that if people heard it they would love it.
So we thought fuck the naysayers and we hammered it at home, and before
we knew it we had been in the US and Canada for years and not gone
anywhere. I am true believer that timing is everything and if we had
come earlier I do not think it would have happened. I know that fans
in the UK might have been disappointed, but I think we went about it
the right way."

WAS APPROVAL IN AMERICA IMPORTANT FOR YOU?
Tomo:
"Yeah. We wanted to see it at home first. We hear all the time about
bands that struggle in America and then just go overseas to see what
happens there, but we wanted to make it there so we could leave and
feel like we could take on the world."

WAS IS DIFFICULT WHEN MATT (WACHTER, FORMER BASSIST) LEFT THE BAND THIS YEAR?
Tomo:
"I don't want to take anything away from Matt, but him leaving the band
was never going to put a kink in the chain. So much of what you see
and hear comes from Jared that the only person who could put a kink in
the chain would be Shannon leaving. Matt was a great addition to the
band but he was unhappy, now he's in Angels & Airwaves he is
happier as they do not tour as much and he is married so that works
much better for him. We now have a guy who loves being in the band
(Tim Kelleher) and our live shows are better as we have four people
onstage who love being there. Matt held on for a long time but it was
for the wrong reasons. It was weird initially with Matt not being
there, but we move forward - Jared can pretty much make a record with
whoever he wants."

Shannon: "With any business or organisation you have people who find their interests and
energies are elsewhere and you just have to flow with it and roll with
the punches. For me I play in a band with my brother and I love it and
I don't see myself doing anything else, but changes always take place
no matter what organisations or job you are in. One one hand we're up
there playing music.
On one hand we are up there creating
and doing something on an emotional leve, but the business side is
important too and is about how we can keep touring and how we can
encourage people to become involved in this band. There are many
outlets and ways that 30 Seconds To Mars manages to exist. Luckily we
have a great relationship with out record label and a great fan base
with the Echelon [30 Seconds To Mars' street team] and it all
contributes."

WOULD YOU SAY YOU PLANNED SOME ASPECTS OF THIS BAND?
Shannon: "It
has been well thought out, well planned and well calculated for a
percentage of our band's activity. The other part has been the
creative aspect, which has been natural and not forced, but there has
been some calculation and some formula we have used and I think that
has been important."

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION ABOUT THE BAND?
Tomo: "That
we are rich. It is hard to explain because if you are not in our world
you just assume that rock stars are rich because they are in magazines
and on TV. People just assume because of that you have money, but it
doesn't work like that. We are starting to move up in the world but I
am not byuing a house. I still have my tiny LA appartment. I don't
have an expensive car or anything; if people were to come see where I
live they would get depressed and perhaps think again about buying that
bootleg shirt or downloading that album."

DOES BOOTLEGGING AT VENUES IN THE UK ANNOY US BANDS?
Tomo:
"Yes. In America we can stop bootlegging as it is against the law. In
other countries it seems to be different and so anyone can sell bad
shirts with really bad versions of our logo on them and no one does
anything about it. I wish I had a great answer for it but I don't. I
heard that Bon Jovi hire retired police officers and bring them on tour
to police each concert area and confiscate illegal merchandising, but
for everyone who annot afford to hire their own army people can get
away with it."

HOW IS THE NEXT RECORD COMING ALONG?
Tomo:
"We have 60 song ideas already. We need to get into a studio and start
getting rid of the weaker ones and elevating the stronger ones, but
Jared is writing non-stop at the moment, so we have plenty of ideas.
Every year that goes by we become more of a band, so I'm excited for
the new material. The way we came together is weird; there was a
record, then we became a band, rather than growing up together, making
a record, then getting signed. We were the total opposite. There was
a record, then a record deal, and then a band. Now we know each other
it is really exciting, after the UK tour we will be pulling away quite
a bit to start making a new record."

RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo RS

RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo RS

LETO VS. LETHARGY: GOING GREEN
SHANNON LETO IS SIMILAR TO HIS
BROTHER IN TERMS OF WORKLOAD; CURRENTLY FINALISING A BOOK AND
EXHIBITION OF HIS PHOTOGRAPHY WHILE TOURING THE WORLD, THE DRUMMER HAS
ALSO DECIDED HE HAS ENOUGH TIME TO START ANOTHER PROJECT.
"I
get the chance to do things I would never otherwise do if not for this
band," admits the sticksman. "Right now I am making a line of clothing
that is all organic and eco-friendly and I will donate half the
proceeds to the environment. I want to build people's awareness on
this and make it a responsibility of mine. I can do this because our
band has started to make a little bit of money and it gives me the
opportunity to give back to the planet and people I care about."
The drummer, who has travelled extensively away from the band, is a passionate advocate of doing something instead of nothing.
"I try to not get caught in the
trappings that come with a successful band," he admits. "I love other
things. On our last US tour we used biodiesel buses and that gave me a
great deal of fulfilment."
However, he is not a super humanitarian and does enjoy the odd spot of first class travel.
"Some luxuries do feel good," he
confesses with a laugh. "I enjoy flying business or first class so I
can think about something other than how cramped I am, but there are
also other things that I like to thnk about and participate in other
than buying a new Rolex or whatever else is the hot new thing to do."

RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo RS08b

RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo RS08b

**Banni(e)** Date d'inscription : 04/02/2007

Merci dark RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo Ipb12

une petite trad'???oui parce que tout le monde sait que............
non je ne dirais pas le mot RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo Ipb12

Voui une trad serait super, parce que là le cerveau ne suit plus, en plus ça m'énerve de comprendre que la moitié des trucs !!

merci dark =)

En gros pour une fois c'est Tomo qui parle Laughing

et il parle de Tim (oui c'est tout ce que j'ai retenu XD bah oui pour une fois rholala....) !!

Embarassed

c'est quand même tristoune ce qu'il dit tomo =/, même si on savait qu'ils roulaient pas sur l'or ... fin bon'. -voui j'ai retrouvé mon cerveau ça va beaucoup mieux pour comprendre-

**Banni(e)** Charette Létropsex h Date d'inscription : 10/12/2007

merci daaaaark

elle est intéressante cette itw...
je planche dessus et je vous fait une traduction cesoir sauf si une bonne âmea le courage de le faire avant RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo Ipb7

RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo Ipb7

et pour le coup :gloire à Tomo RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo Inclassa

Apprenti Echelon Date d'inscription : 16/01/2007

Il est pas déjà quelques part ici cet interview ?
Je sais que je l'ai déjà lu l'an dernier, mais je sais plus où.

Ca me fait penser : des nouvelles de la lignes de vêtements bio de Shannon ?

Habitué(e) Date d'inscription : 02/07/2007

Euh...c'est pas tout pareil que cette interview là ? RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo 155319

euh wé t'as raison Lilas, c'est la même itw.

**Banni(e)** Charette Létropsex h Date d'inscription : 10/12/2007

du coup y a une traduction sur l'autre topic^^

oui l'article date du Rock Sound de Janvier 2008 et non 2009 RockSound, January 2008 issue - Interview with Shannon & Tomo Ipb12

» shannon et tomo interview à music review
» INTERVIEW DE SHANNON ET TOMO - L'ESSENTIEL (luxembourg)
» Jared Leto + Chino Moreno ON NEW ROCKSOUND ISSUE [16.08.11]
» interview de tomo dans albumcheck
» interview de jared dans rocksound 142