Tenacious D fuse comedy, rock in debut album
By TOM O'CONNELL
Scene Music Critic
The self-proclaimed "Greatest Band on Earth" backs up that steep claim by delivering a magnificent self-titled debut album that's as funny as Spinal Tap and rocks harder than anything out of the current rap/metal genre.
Tenacious D is acoustic dynamic duo Jack Black and his shorter, fatter, older and balder counterpart, Kyle Gass. You may recognize Black from his supporting roles in High Fidelity and Jesus' Son, or his upcoming role with Gweneth Paltrow in the Farrelly brothers' Shallow Hal.
When not acting, Jack and Kyle have spent the last 6 years building a large, underground and insanely devoted fan base. Shortly after meeting in Tim Robbins' Actors Gang in the mid 1990s, they began performing as Tenacious D in Los Angeles clubs. In 1998, after being discovered by Mr. Show's David Cross, Tenacious D had a short-lived HBO comedy series in which they performed to an apathetic open mic crowd and pursued their ridiculous dreams of rock stardom. They assume that it is just a matter of time until they achieve world dominance through their rocking power. Ironically, they do not seem to be far from reaching their goal.
With the versatile vocals and the great spoken word delivery of Jack Black (JB) and the highly intricate guitar talents of Kyle Gass (KG), Tenacious D is actually playing themselves as caricatures of many kinds of rock music. Mixing deadpan God vs. Satan themes with excessive sexual prowess bravado and constantly self-referential lyrics, Tenacious D is like Simon and Garfunkel meets The Smothers Brothers meets every glam rock and metal band of the 1980s.
Spoofing all these elements leads to an album so entertaining, it dares you not to sing along, provided you are not already choking on your own laughter. Their songs are so earnest and convincing that you find it easy to forget that it's all just an act. As one critic wrote of a 1999 performance, "If watching these two short, fat, weird, bald guys perform doesn't make you happier than you've been in years, then you are withered and dead within."
Thinking themselves almost too powerful, KG and JB originally decided that The D did not need a backup band. For the album, however, they chose to recruit some extra muscle. Former Nirvana drummer, current Foo Fighter front man and long time D fan Dave Grohl returns to his true talents by drumming such hard rocking beats all over the album, that you wish he would join the band full time. Page McConnell of Phish adds smooth piano and keyboards, while Warren Fitzgerald's lead electric guitar slices through the tracks. Many fans (this writer included) were skeptical of the addition of drums and electric guitar to the originally acoustic Tenacious D, but legendary producers The Dust Brothers (who have worked with Beastie Boys and Beck) have carefully crafted an album that mixes the acoustic with the electric to truly enhance the original sound.
Songs like "The Road" and "Kyle Quit the Band" are about the challenges and rewards of being a rock star. "I met a tasty baby in Michigan/ We screwed two times then I left/ Sometimes I think of my baby in Michigan/ Why can't I stay in one place for more than two days?" "Rock Your Socks" unabashedly boasts the virtuoso of the band. "Me and KG were classically trained to rock your socks off!/ So give it up for KG, give it up for me." But Jack warns that it isn't all fun and games, "I know what you're saying/ I think I'll get an oversized guitar, gain 40 pounds and be the next D/ It ain't that easy/ Are you willing to make the commitment/ To waking up at the crack of noon every day?"
Epic battle songs of good and evil such as "Tribute" and "Wonderboy" are reminiscent of old Led Zeppelin tunes. Kyle and Jack meet a demon on the road and he challenges them to play the greatest song in the world. "So we played the first thing that came to our heads/ Just so happened to be the best song in the world." But then comes the catch, "This is not the greatest song in the world/ No, this is just a tribute /Couldn't remember the greatest song in the world."
Some songs ooze with sexual hilarity. "Double Team" describes one lucky lady's night with the D. "You feel a tickling on your head/ It's KG with the feather and the French tickler/ Look out baby, he got the tools/ And then you feel something down by your feet/ It's me, it's JB, I'm sucking on your toes!"
Even if the music was bad, the songs would still be funny. But what is so satisfying about Tenacious D is that they write truly great melodies and mix great guitar parts with gorgeous harmonies. Tenacious D has breathed new life into both rock and roll and comedy, and it's been a long time since Hollywood produced anything so funny, filthy and wholly original.
All Scene Stories for Tuesday, October 16, 2001
