Picture perfect!
THIRTY SECONDS TO MARS MOTORPOINT ARENA
AMERICAN rock band Thirty Seconds To Mars were at the Motorpoint Arena on Monday night for a rescheduled gig and the crowd thought it was well worth the wait.
Fronted by their charismatic frontman, Oscar-winning actor Jared Leto, and featuring his brother, drummer Shannon Leto, and touring guitarist Stevie Aiello, it has been close to 26 years since they released their self-titled debut album, which shot them to the top end of the music scene.
Decades later the band is still rooted in rock but have evolved a sound that takes inspiration from a range of musical styles, and as Jared walked on to the stage, dressed in a black robe, blue leather gloves and wraparound sunglasses, he promptly sat down and opened with Up In The Air which the crowd were immediately up for as their soaring vocals were sung back to the band at full volume.
With a triangle of lights as the backdrop and Shannon and his drums to one side of the stage, Jared was free to roam which he did to perfection, involving all sections of the Arena.
Kings And Queens saw the pyrotechnics working overtime and when he asked the crowd to jump around, they duly obliged on songs like Hurricane and This Is War with its chanting intro, while Rescue Me saw him invite audience members onstage.
They played their 2017 single Walk On Water, a nebulously political song, before an acoustic interlude which saw Alibi and From Yesterday captivate the crowd.
Making great use of a small runway, Jared really engaged the crowd, talking between songs, urging them to join in.
City Of Angels saw the Arena swathed with lights from mobile phones, before their great hits The Kill and Closer To The Edge, with its rain of confetti, brought a high energy and entertaining set to an end.
Jared had worked the crowd like the pro that he is, and the audience screamed themselves hoarse.