An Interview with Matt Watcher of 30 Seconds to Mars

Even 30 Seconds to Mars frontman, Jared Leto, has asked the question, "what's with the fascination with the Echelon?" Being a proud member of the band's extremely loyal fan base myself, I can assure you there is much to be fascinated by. If you were to look up the definition for the word 'fan' you would probably find this (courtesy of Wikipedia): "The word fan refers to someone who has an intense, occasionally overwhelming liking of a sporting club, person, group of persons, work of art, idea, or trend." That sounds simple enough, and in most cases true. I don't know, however, if that definition alone could come close to describing the passion the Echelon has for their men of 30 Seconds to Mars.

On December 11, 2006, I had an opportunity to do something that any member of the Echelon would be honored to do. I had the pleasure of interviewing Matt Wachter, the massively talented bassist (and all around nice guy) for 30 Seconds to Mars. We talked about 30's many successes over the past year, the Echelon, what's coming next for the band, and billy goats (yes, billy goats). For anyone who has had the pleasure of meeting Matt in person and talked with him for five minutes, it is no surprise that he can be as funny as he is intelligent and talented. We'll get to Mr. Wachter's amusing and thought-provoking insights in just a moment.

The casual reader of this article might take a look at it and say, "what's the big deal? Every major rock group in history has had their share of loyal fans." I could understand that statement if, in fact, the Echelon were like any other group of fans dedicated to their band of choice. It might be even easier to understand that statement if the band itself treated their fans the same way all the other "major rock bands in history" treated theirs. Having seen the relationship between members of the Echelon and our men from Mars first hand, I can say there is definitely something greater at work here.....something far greater.

I should say at this point that 30 Seconds to Mars is not the first band I have ever taken a liking to during my lifetime. In fact, there was a famous rock band that held my heart for 25 years. I have seen them live many times and love their music. The difference between 30 Seconds to Mars and this unnamed band is how they are with their fans. This is something I touch on during my interview with 30's bassist, Matt Wachter. I asked Matt what he thought it was about 30 Seconds to Mars that inspires the kind of connection they have with the Echelon. "We're just so damn handsome", he says with complete seriousness before trailing off into laughter. "No, I'm kidding. You know, for us, well at least for myself and I think I can speak for the rest of the guys, growing up and being a fan of music.....a BIG fan of music, you want to have a connection, with your favorite artist or you want to meet them, or maybe get an autograph, or maybe just to talk to them and tell them, you know, thanks for the inspiration. Growing up, for myself, I never really had that opportunity because like I said earlier, a lot of bands just kind of remain in their world and that's fine. I respect that completely. But with us we wanted to do something different. That's why after every single show for the past five years we've stayed afterwards and signed anything the kids want. Then beyond that we're out by the bus like talking with people, taking photos, just connecting."

Matt made an excellent point, likely without giving any thought to the impact his words make in the hearts of the Echelon. There was never even an opportunity to get up close and personal with my former favorite band, get an autograph, let alone chat with them by the bus and take numerous pictures. These are things that the members of 30 Seconds to Mars, Jared and Shannon Leto, Tomo Milicevic and Matt Wachter make a conscious decision to do at each and every show. Their bond with the Echelon is so strong that when Tomo found out my son was on crutches across the street from the last venue we saw them play at, he decided to run across the street and down into the parking lot to see him and take pictures with him. What band does that? They spend so much time with the fans, in fact, that they constantly refer to them as their family and it is evident that the fans could not agree more.

The sense of family that the band creates with their fans does not come without its share of trials and tribulations. Though it may not be evident to those just now being introduced to 30's music, the band has been playing together professionally for several years and released a self-titled album in 2002. The Echelon formed at the beginning of a journey that has taken the band to where they are now, on what seems to be a neverending rise to the top of the rock universe. Since the release of 'A Beautiful Lie' there has been an influx of newer fans who may not be familiar with 30's earlier music. This does not always sit well with the tried and true members of the Echelon who have been steadfastly supporting their guys for so long. When I asked Matt if it mattered to the band how long their fans have been along for the ride he summed up their feelings quite well. "Well, of course there is always a place in our hearts for the ones who have been there from the beginning, but ultimately the purpose of our music is to spread, you know, the purpose of the music is we're giving it away. It's for anyone to make a connection to or to get something out of it, or maybe to help them through a hard time, so why should that be limited to just a certain group of people? " "Inevitably there are going to be some people who feel a little deflated because the band may be tapping into a new audience. It's happened to almost every band I can think of. You know, there inevitably comes that point where they start to maybe get played on MTV or get played on the radio and then a lot of fans feel like they are no longer part of this tight knit secretive community. I mean, it's a really sensitive issue because you ultimately, I mean we want to see the fans grow with us and embrace the changes happening and be excited for us being able to get through to other people."

Although the ever changing dynamic of the Echelon may not be music to everyone's ears, there is one facet of what Jared calls this "one big dysfunctional family" that is irreplaceable; their common goal to promote and support 30 Seconds to Mars. Over the past year I have had the pleasure of getting to know hundreds of loyal Echelon via the internet. Many of us do not know each other by first name, but rather by a screen name. I am known as Mars Army Girl to those dear Echelon friends of mine, and somehow this is all they need to know where my loyalty stands. The connection between members of the Echelon is nearly as strong as the fan's connection to the band. They network constantly passing along vital tour information, making plans to meet and carpool to shows, plan endless road trips to follow their main men on tour for several states, and they of course vote!

This past year 30 Seconds to Mars has won numerous awards, most of which were voted on by fans. This began with the MTV2 award. The internet has been a tremendous resource for the Echelon, keeping them connected and updated on all things 30. Whether it is through the official 30 Seconds to Mars website and their message boards, Myspace, Yahoo or MSN groups dedicated to the band, the information is out there. When it came time to vote for the MTV2 award the Echelon was more than ready. This amazing group of people has one common agenda; to spread the word about the band and do everything in their power to make sure the world knows that 30 Seconds to Mars is the best thing to come onto the rock scene in many years, period. They accomplished this by voting until their fingers bled, securing a win by half a million votes over their competition. That kind of dedication to a group is unsurpassed.

All of these accomplishments are well-deserved in the eyes of the Echelon and they were happy to be even a small part of the band's successes this year. To hear bassist Matt Wachter tell it, however, the Echelon had EVERYTHING to do with it. I asked Matt if the fans really had that much of an impact on the band's success in 2006. "Absolutely! I think without a doubt, you know, especially in this day of high-paced information...people on the internet and Myspace, you know our fans are really proactive in utilizing those tools to spread the word. And I think just at the shear rate that.....I think for the MTV2 award we won by something like, they said by half a million votes, or something like that? I mean, that takes a lot of people(laughs) you know, really, to commit to just sit down in front of the computer and press 'VOTE' over and over again. " Having seen the dedication the fans put forth during the voting period for the MTV2 award, I would have to agree. When I relayed to Matt how myself and so many other Echelon spent time making graphics and banners to promote voting for this award, his praise for the hard-working fans of 30 Seconds to Mars knew no bounds. "Yeah, I think that is kind of a perfect example of just how involved our fans, like yourself, get with 30 Seconds to Mars because I think we make them feel like they are part of the family, which they are, you know? We get them invested in what we're doing and they become a part of it, as opposed to a lot of bands who just, they draw a very clearly defined line...there's us and then there's you, you know? Whereas with us, that line is nonexistent." Early on in our conversation, even with the first mention of 'the Echelon', Matt interrupted me mid sentence to interject, "who without, by the way, none of these awards would be possible. I think it's a total testament to the dedication of the Echelon and beyond, you know, um, to their commitment to 30 Seconds to Mars. You know, the gratitude we have....you can't really even put it into words."

In an attempt to shift gears from exchanging words of affection for the band and the fans, I wanted to be sure to discuss further the many accolades 30 has received in recent months. Following their win for the MTV2 award 30 Seconds to Mars won two Fuse Chainsaw awards (one for the band for Best Video Inspired by a Film for 'The Kill', and one for Jared for Prince of Darkness in 'The Kill'), an MTVU Woodie award for Best Live Action Video, and their album 'A Beautiful Lie' reached gold status and is quickly on it's way to becoming platinum. The icing on the cake occurred this past week with lead singer Jared Leto winning an award for Crossover Artist of the Year, for crossing over successfully from film to music. The band has battled the built-in stigma of having an actor-turned-singer front them for a long time, though those of us in the Echelon know very well that Jared was a musician long before he became an actor. The fact that he won this award for Crossover artist just cements further the bands many achievements in 2006 and makes the future of 30 Seconds to Mars bigger and brighter than ever. Mr. Wachter was quick to agree. "For us we already felt like we had succeeded in kind of breaking the stereotypes and reinventing the role of actor-turned-musician, and it was just nice to be recognized for that, for Jared to be recognized for that and to be presented an award. That was a great honor I think."

Honors and awards aside, there is much more to factor in to making music and sharing it with the world. There is the business of touring, the act of setting out on what feels like a neverending trek of playing city after city until they all become one giant blur on what's left of the artists psyche. This is a necessary evil to keep the artist's music out in the public milieu, spreading the word across the country and for 30 Seconds to Mars, keeping the connection with their fans alive. Ultimately, the music industry is a business, irregardless of the art. This fact is not lost on Matt Wachter. "Let's face facts, the rock industry or genre of music is in a bad state of affairs, I'd say the music industry in general. Touring is an expensive little business. You know, nobody's getting rich. We're doing this because we love it and we want to be able to continue to keep doing that, and unfortunately it all comes down to the almighty dollar. Without money we can't keep doing it. "

Touring also brings with it its share of security problems. The Echelon has been lucky thus far to have unprescedented access to the band at every show. I have spoken with many fans recently who have shown some concern that the ever-increasing popularity of 30 Seconds to Mars will hamper their ability to spend as much time with the leaders of their dysfunctional family. I asked Matt if this was a valid concern. "I mean, realistically, at some of these venues....the bigger the venues are, the further away the buses are parked and that kind of thing., and you know the busier we may get, so it's really hard to say. We do everything in our power to maintain a one-on-one connection and we will continue to, as long as we can despite the physical and mental barriers. " I'm sure if the members of the band can keep the connectedness between themselves and the fans going, they will. What could have an impact on that is the conduct of fans at future shows. I posed a question to Matt about some reported incidents at a handful of shows on the 'Welcome to the Universe' tour where there were some crowd control issues. "I mean, there have been isolated cases at shows where things have gotten a little out of hand. Nobody has bodyguards or anything like that. If it does seem to be something that is a reoccurring thing then we'll think about that. You know, there's been isolated incidents where we've had to stop the show because things got a little out of hand. But I think in general everyone has a respect for each other in the crowd, and if somebody falls down you pick them up."

With the ugly side of touring behind us, I wanted to talk to Matt about the many inspirational stories I've heard from fans. I have read many accounts of how 30 Seconds to Mars have inspired fans to overcome difficult periods in their lives, get them through recovering from an illness or even the death of a loved one. I have my own story that I had the opportunity to share with the band back in August of this year. I wanted to know if Matt had a favorite inspirational fan story he could share with us. "You know what's really touching is when we have a lot of soldiers who have just come home from Iraq, or are going over there, or they send us pictures from over in Iraq and they are just saying how we help them get through being so far away from their family and being in those kind of conditions. And I mean, that is something that we can really relate to, being away from our families....not being in a country that's war torn at the moment. But yeah, it's really touching to hear that, to know that in some small way we're helping them get through this."

30 Seconds to Mars inspires a nation......somehow I'm not surprised. I've heard it said by so many that they feel a truly spiritual connection to the music. I have been tremendously inspired by the collective whole of the lyrics and music these men share with us. But what inspires them? I asked Matt what artist in his youth might have inspired him to the same degree. "There were many, um, some of them I'm too embarrassed to name. You know what, and it wasn't even ....for me I was almost influenced more by the people I was surrounded by, you know like musicians that I played with, my family. You know, it's like I was more inspired by real life events, not really music. Obviously, there were some records that really got me through some hard times, you know, as a soundtrack to the uncomfortable age of adolescence. So for me music was therapy, and hopefully that's what we're offering people as well....a soundtrack to their lives, the good times and the bad times."

A soundtrack to our lives....so well put Mr. Wachter. The longer my conversation with Matt went on the less I wondered why we, the Echelon, love these guys to the edge of the earth....and back again. They make music for themselves and then share it, so unselfishly, with the masses and all in the hopes they can make the fans feel as good about hearing what they have to say as they feel about putting it out there. This made me wonder out loud if all their recent success would change any of that. I had to ask the question, with all their recent success is it more important now to please the critics or the fans? "For us it's always been the fans, because in the end it's the fans who got us here....not the critics. You know, it's such a fine line to walk. It's like you can read a hundred good reviews and then you read one bad review and it just spoils the whole batch. It leaves a bad taste in your mouth. So, you know, everybody is entitled to take what they want from the record and they're also entitled to their opinions, good or bad. So it's whether or not it gets printed in a major magazine or not I guess (laughs). But for us we make music for ourselves and for the fans, so that they can take something from it and a lot of the critics, you know critics has such a negative connotation to it. You would be considered a critic, but you're also a fan. So which is first? It's a fine line."

Knowing that my time on the phone with Matt was not without limits, I wanted to ask him a couple of questions directly from the fans. One common question I received via e-mail was whether or not there would be another single released from 'A Beautiful Lie' to follow their current single, 'From Yesterday.' I felt compelled to ask about the possibility of another Bartholomew Cubbins' directed video tied to another possible single in the future. "Laughing hard) Um, well, if we could ever find Bartholomew again, if we choose to work with him again. That remains to be decided. But as far as another single...sure. But, you know, I'm also not sure. " I had to press this further by asking which song he himself would pick to be the next single. "Um, that's a tough one. I'm superstitious.... I really don't really like to play that game. You know, it would be great to have another song, and to make another video and do it all over again. It's a lot of fun. I hope we can get that opportunity."

It's been said that it is better to give than to receive. I don't think any band in history has been more giving to their fans than 30 Seconds to Mars. They spend endless amounts of time with them, include them in their live performances as well as their music videos. I asked Matt what the Echelon could possibly give back to them that they haven't already. "Well, you know, I think just to keep doing what they're doing, spreading the word, coming to shows, and participating....and to just be enthusiastic about what we're doing." A task that, I'm quite sure, the fans will be more than happy to do.

I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank Matt for taking the time out of his incredibly busy schedule to chat with me. He was very genuine and a joy to talk to. Matt is just one of the many reasons the Echelon love and support 30 Seconds to Mars as much as they do. In writing this piece it was impossible for me to separate being a member of the greatest group of fans on the planet and being a journalist. So I gave up, done deal. I am part of the Echelon and I wear the title proud. There, I said it. With that in mind, I started thinking about all the things we love about the four men that make up 30 Seconds to Mars. Is it the way Jared openly expresses his undying love for his Blackberry? Is it the numerous YouTube videos of their interviews showing they are not only great musicians, but also complete comedians (OCTV interview anyone)? Is it the way Shannon mesmerizes us with his relentless attack on his drum kit or the way Tomo head bangs with sheer ferocity during 'The Fantasy'? How about Doctor Vaktor's 100% intensity on the bass during each and every show? The answer is simple.....it's everything. The talent of 30 Seconds to Mars along with all of the above is what drives the Echelon to be the largest and most dedicated group of supporters the world of rock has ever seen.

The question has been asked by many. "Is the Echelon a cult"? Or is it mere obsession? I think I can speak for the entire Echelon when I say......'don't save us, don't save us, cause we don't care.'

Not long after this interview was taped Matt Wachter, in a move that shocked fans the world over, announced that he was leaving 30 Seconds to Mars. I consider myself privileged to have been the last journalist to have interviewed Matt before his departure, but truly as a fan I am truly sad to see him go. I wish him the best.

Just for fun-

CA: Matt, I'd like to finish up with what I'd like to call 'Completely Pointless Questions with Matt Wachter'. Are you ready?

MW: I'm ready.

CA: Okay. If you were stranded on a desert island and could only bring three things with you, what would they be?

MW: (long pause) Oh boy.

CA: I told you they were pointless.

MW: No, they're not pointless, but this actually requires thought. Like, a lot (laughs with interviewer). I mean, are they animate objects, inanimate objects, are they people?

CA: Could be any of those, anything.

MW: See, now I'm thinking family members, (something inaudible).....oh shit.

CA: (laughs hard) Boy, I didn't know this was going to be so tough Matt.

MW: I know, I know. I take the approach of MacGuyver always. Like, okay, what can I have that will get me off the island? Duct tape? Twine? A billy goat?

CA: Oh my goodness, a billy goat?(laughing) Would you like to move on to the next question?

MW: Yes, maybe we'll come back to that one.

CA: Okay. Which member of the band tells the best jokes?

MW: Hmm, Jared. It would be Jared.

CA: I knew that somehow.

MW: He's very, very detailed....and he has a lot of them. So it would be Jared.

CA: In keeping with that, since he can be a bit quirky, does he have any strange habits on the bus when he sleeps?

MW: Usually I'm sleeping as well, although I will say that Jared and I both have this rather strange occurrence of sometimes waking up in the night and being disoriented. I know myself, I've been known to kind of scream to the top of my lungs....

CA: Oh, lovely.

MW: (laughing) and jump out of my bunk running. Yeah, just little things.

CA: Yeah, okay. Now, is there an article of clothing that Tomo or Shannon wears that you wouldn't be caught dead in?

MW: No, I wear his clothing all the time. We share.

CA: You share?

MW: And share alike.

CA: Wonderful. Last but not least, who would win in a burping contest?

MW: None of us really burp that much.

CA: Oh, c'mon now Matt.

MW: I know that sounds boring and very unmanly, but I don't think any of us really burp.

CA: Okay Matt, I'm going to be forced to ask you about the desert island again.

MW: Okay, me. There.

CA: Okay great.

MW: I would win.

CA: Well, that was it for me and I just wanted to say thank you again for talking to me today, and for everything you guys do.

MW: Your welcome, thank you.

CA: It's so appreciated by the fans. Have a good show tonight, I'm sure you're somewhere performing.

MW: Yeah, we're in Santa Barbara.

CA: Well, have a good show and tell everyone I said congratulations for everything.

MW: I will. Thank you so much. Okay, take care.