I've been to six concerts in my life:

Metallica
Dream Theater
Elton John
Meatloaf
Rush
Yes

30 Seconds to Mars marks my seventh.

Folks, these guys kicked some serious ass. Their stage presence, interaction with their fans, and overall performance were the best I've ever had the pleasure of being a part of. The fact that they were in a small venue certainly helped, but that's beside the point. Jared Leto demonstrated an appreciation for his fans on a level I've never seen from any of the previous six bands. At one point during the set, he actually got down off the stage and mingled throughout the audience - WHILE SINGING - before returning to the stage. There were several moments when, while on stage, he'd lean into the audience and let anyone who was close enough to shake his hand and pat him on the back. I was fortunate enough to be one of those people.

Before getting into their last song, he let everyone know how much he and the band appreciate our support, acknowledged how fortunate they are to have so many fans, and announced that they'd be hanging out at the bar for as long as it took to give every single person there an opportunity to meet them and just shoot the breeze. Then he promised us that their next album would be available for purchase soon, and on a file-swapping service near us (hehehe). My wife and I will be buying a copy the day it's released, thank you.

Tonight, I got to see, first hand, what a band who hasn't let success or the paranoia of killer fans, looks and sounds like live. I will never forget it.

After the show, he tossed the pick he used tonight into the audience. I caught it. I'll take a pic as soon as I replace the batteries in my camera.

LOL!

Here are pictures I took of the show for my wife (she couldn't make it).

As promised, the pick I caught:

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