The men of 30 Seconds To Mars are making a detour landing in Mississauga as headliners of tomorrow's show in the Playdium Band Wars series. Their mission: to produce music that has depth and substance. It's a mission that appears to have been completed, because 30 Seconds To Mars has created a repertoire of guitar-driven, melodic hard rock that's a contrast of raw and refined sounds.

Formed in Los Angeles and together for almost a decade, the rock foursome have some roots in Southern Ontario and are looking forward to their visit to the Great White North.

Drummer Shannon Leto said the band members lived in Toronto for a few monhts and their first performance ever was at the legendary Horseshoe Tavern. With brother Jared Leto on lead vocals and guitar, Matt Wachter on bass and Solon Bixler on guitar, 30 Seconds To Mars is working hard to bring integrity back to rock and roll. "I've always been into bands like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the Clash, the Who, who all have this conceptual thing going on," said Leto. "We've always been into that. We want to do that."

However, the time when music fans would buy an album for the entire album is over, Leto said. "There are so many disposable bands these days," he said. "We try to be true to ourselves, to be the best band we can be."

Unlike other bands with actor-turned-rock-star members [boy do I hate that phrase... -kaz], 30 Seconds To Mars have done well in keeping Jared Leto's acting career separate from their music. The vocalist may be recognized for his work in the early 1990's television series My So-Called Life and his appearances in recent films Fight Club and Requiem For A Dream.

According to Shannon, music has always been a big part of life for him and brother Jared. "It just made sense to start a band," said Leto. "We let the music speak for itself. We take this very seriously. This is our lives."