Who is Tenacious D? Well, if you ask the band's members, they would tell you they are "The Greatest Band in History" and they've come here to "kick some ass." But who are they, really?
Tenacious D, or "the D" as the band members often refer to themselves, formed back in 1994 in Los Angeles with members Jack Black (lead vocals, guitar) and Kyle Gass (lead acoustic guitar, vocals). They started out playing small clubs when they were picked up to join a comedy show in Hollywood. As the duo gained notoriety, they started to go out on their own, write more songs and tour the country.
Black gained fame as an actor (you may remember him as the obnoxious clerk in "High Fidelity"), but the band was not forgotten. The D got its own show on HBO, but it was short-lived, so the band went back to the road. Tenacious D has been touring for the whole last year, and it finally found some time to get into the studio and record some songs.
The band's self-titled debut album is essentially a greatest-hits collection of the songs it has been playing for the last seven years. To improve the sound, it brought in numerous special guests to play on the album: Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters), Page McConnell (Phish) and the Dust Brothers. The music on the album has a distinct '70s rock feel, complemented by a near-perfect combination of comedy and rock. The lyrics of the songs are just a bunch of raunchy jokes, but Black takes them all seriously, compounding the humor.
The album contains 21 tracks - 14 songs and seven skits (which are actually funny). Following up is "Tribute," an homage to the greatest song ever written, which is also written by the D. The only problem is that they forgot it, so they had to write a tribute to it instead, and they chose to do it in a very Led Zeppelin-ish way.
"Wonderboy," the first single off the album, is a song Black has dedicated to himself, as he talks about he and KG as superheroes, and how the band was formed.
"F*** Her Gently" is a touching ballad about everyone's favorite pastime, and how sometimes we can't be too rough. The string section just adds hilarity.
"The Road" starts out as a bluesy rock song with crude lyrics but heads back into familiar territory halfway through with a return to '70s style. "Friendship" seems like the only really sincere song on the album until the end when the band chants, "As long as there's a record deal, we'll always be friends" over and over.
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"Rock Your Socks" is an anthemic song that demands listeners to "Give it up for KG give it up for [Black]," while "Double Team" gets fans "grooving to a cool '70s groove." And let's just say the title is not a sports reference. The album concludes with the very weird epic "City Hall," which tells a story of the end of the world and what it would be like if the D took over.
After all that, you might think this is going to be just a stupid album with a bunch of immature sex jokes. Surprisingly enough, the music has substance, and the songs are extremely catchy. I guarantee you'll be singing along with all the songs after only a few listens. Though they may not be the rock legends they claim to be, if these two guys can continue to put out albums as creative, funny and musically strong as this one, Tenacious D could be a name we'll be hearing for years to come.
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