Thirty Seconds To Mars – It’s The End Of The World But It’s A Beautiful Day (Album Review)

The 6th studio album by American alternative rock titan Thirty Seconds To Mars is every bit as bold and bright as brothers Jared and Shannon Leto have been known to deliver throughout their extremely successful careers in the music industry.

Containing 11 tracks dealing with the ups and downs of love, life, and the dreams that make life worth living, ‘It’s The End Of The World But It’s A Beautiful Day’ cleverly encompasses themes of conflict and harmony, resulting in an album which is both deeply emotional and relatable to every listener.

Perhaps most notable to long-time followers of the band, is the alternative musical direction taken with this album after the popularity of 2018 album ‘America’ and its drastic diversion from the band’s earlier emo-rock focus.

Though signature hard-hitting rock anthems can be found on this album, the band seems truly vulnerable on tracks such as ‘Get Up Kid’ and ‘Never Not Love You’, where raw emotion and soaring vocals take the place of break-neck rhythms and Jared Leto’s feverish growls.

The album’s 1st track ‘Stuck’ is perhaps the song that most emulates the band’s alt-rock roots with its swaggering chorus riff and seductive vocal line amid the verses’ pounding beat and haunting melody. As the album’s 1st single, ‘Stuck’ is every bit the hummable and memorable opener fans would want, and serves nicely as a hypnotic introduction to this colourful album.

The 2nd track ‘Life Is Beautiful’ tones down the sultry energy of ‘Stuck’ into an initially muted piano ballad. However, listeners would be mistaken if they think that ‘Life Is Beautiful’ doesn’t bring its powerful message of confidence to the table, as the chorus is rife with anthemic bursts of sound and Jared Leto’s call to arms, echoing it’s “time to rise up again!” It’s certainly a song of two halves; an addictive sonic combination of rip-roaring beats and tentative solemnity.

Another track that hangs onto these themes of positivity and encouragement is the stand-out ‘Get Up Kid’, where Leto dives deep into the psyche of a character broken and wounded by setbacks in life and love. It is the singer’s intensely soulful and stripped-back vocal performance that drives the lyrics home.

Lines such as “Baby its bittersweet, to love someone but to watch them leave” sensitively capture the nuances of heartbreak and loneliness in love and afford the track a sobering sense of realism. The chorus though is filled with hope to overcome this darkness and look to the future, executed with powerfully pleading vocals and a soaring choral background.

The 6th track, ‘World On Fire’, seems like the perfect song for the worst days. Its central lyrical message of “let there be light” encapsulates the band’s wish for both world peace and the well-being of their listeners during their darkest days. Not only does it call for unity but also finding identity in uncertain times. There is a belief that “life leads us out of the dark” and this is expressed musically through powerful vocal belts and a bright and surging instrumental that inspires thoughts of freedom and euphoria.

‘Lost These Days’ is a deeply reflective ballad looking back on the remnants of a toxic relationship. Beginning with a sombre and nostalgic acoustic guitar background paired with Leto’s restrained vocal performance, the track is a slow-burn journey through painful memories as the lyrics reminisce on past mistakes and regrets.

However, this is in no way a one-dimensional ballad. The band makes sure to keep their listeners on their toes with the song suddenly trading its soft piano-led chorus for a thumping dance beat, seemingly vanquishing the track’s previous fragility and haunting poignancy. This is a thrilling twist though, with these soul-stirring sentiments colliding in a beautifully dark climax.

The profoundly resonant and unashamedly emotional messages of finding inner strength and dealing with mental hardship in this album speak of the real-life demons that so many struggle to overcome each day; a knowledge that forces ‘It’s The End Of The World But It’s A Beautiful Day’ to be seen through the perspective of those who will undoubtedly find comfort in this album.

Score/Excellent: With Thirty Seconds To Mars’ worldwide fanbase following their every move, it is encouraging to see the band still delivering such heartfelt and raw material 20 years down the line. This is an album that will come as a very welcome gift to many currently falling on hard times and needing a comforting reminder that clouds eventually part to reveal a ‘beautiful day’. It is to them and so many more that I recommend this album.

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