Thirty Seconds to Mars review

O2 Arena, London
The Hollywood actor may not be the world’s greatest rock star, but his committed, fan-friendly performance has charm

The first sense that this might not be the busiest show in the O2 Arena’s history comes in the concourses: no one is having to queue at the bar before the show. Inside, the top tier is closed, and the arena floor is bizarre: a packed back third, of general admission, and a vast golden circle that is barely a third full. It looks awful, and visitors to the toilet during the show are accosted by arena staff trying to persuade them to take wristbands to go to the front. Thirty Seconds to Mars singer Jared Leto even appeals before the encore for people to go in search of wristbands to come and join the little throng at the front of the stage.

Still, Leto pulls out everything to entertain the people who are there, rather than fretting about the ones who aren’t. He pulls fans on stage and takes requests from the crowd – the planned acoustic segment goes charmingly awry when rather than sticking to the set list, he plays half-remembered snippets of obscurities for a fan at the front. He works tirelessly. Thirty Seconds to Mars may have started as Leto’s side project from his Hollywood career, but they’ve been a successful band for more than 20 years, and he is no amateur.