Claim: 30 Seconds to Mars got its distribution through Virgin Records.

30 Seconds to Mars is the debut studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars . It was first released on August 27 , 2002 , by Immortal Records and distributed by Virgin Records . The album was produced by Bob Ezrin , Brian Virtue , and Thirty Seconds to Mars , and was recorded in rural Wyoming during 2001 and early 2002 . It had been in the works for a couple of years , with lead vocalist Jared Leto writing the majority of the songs .   30 Seconds to Mars was described as a concept album centering on human struggle and self-determination , characterized by personal lyrics that use otherworldly elements and conceptual ideas to illustrate a truthful personal situation . The album incorporates progressive sounds with influences and elements from new wave , space rock , and electronica . Upon release , 30 Seconds to Mars received mostly positive reviews from music critics , who commended the album 's lyrical content and the band 's musicianship , which has been compared to the works of Pink Floyd , Tool , and Brian Eno .   The album debuted at number 107 on the Billboard 200 and number one on the US Top Heatseekers . It was a slow-burning success that eventually sold two million copies worldwide . It produced two singles , `` Capricorn -LRB- A Brand New Name -RRB- '' and `` Edge of the Earth '' . Thirty Seconds to Mars promoted the album by opening concerts for bands such as Puddle of Mudd , Incubus , Sevendust , and Chevelle .