DOGSTAR* SCALE OF EXCELLENCE* = Musical equivalent of Sweet November. Big names but totally overrated. * * = Musical equivalent of A Scanner Darkly. Good in theory; bad in execution. * * * = Musical equivalent of Bill and Ted Excellent Adventure. Middle America will love it but anyone with a keen ear will tear it to shreds. * * * * = Musical equivalent of The Matrix. Stiff and somewhat unnatural, but completely and utterly entertaining. * * * * * = Musical equivalent of Devil Advocate. So captivating and believable, you almost forget youe watchingnd listeningo a bunch of actors.30 SECONDS TO MARS * * *THE DEAL: No one had high hopes for Jared Leto musical career after seeing him front the fictional alt-rock band Frozen Embryos on the early �0s teenage drama My So-Called Life. However, once 30 Seconds to Mars scored a major-label deal with Virgin Records, launched an apocalyptic street team/fan club called the Echelon (which fans actually joined) and started touring with credible bands like the Used and My Chemical Romance, Leto & Co. became hard to ignore. THE DIRT: Sure, Leto and his bandmates might have started off as n-metal cronies, but it wasn long until they hitched themselves to the emo bandwagon. After the release of their second album, A Beautiful Lie, they wisely began ripping off their new tourmates�sound�and smoky-eye application techniquesnd it worked. The albumLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA* Dogstar was the band that Keanu Reeves formed in the early �0s shortly after starring in the cinematic masterpiece Point Break, which has since become a traveling musical you can see in clubs across the country. For many scene purists, the band brand of iff y alt-rock became the bar against which other musical vanity projects were judged. In other words, Dogstar is largely responsible for why most music fans think actor-bands suck.
