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TENACIOUS D ‘Epic’ (2002)
Formed by actor Jack Black, on vocals and guitar with musician friend
Kyle Gass on acoustic guitar and vocals. It also features guest appearances
from Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) on drums/guitar and Steve McDonald (Red
Kross) on bass.
Seen as a humorous side project by some, this CD does have
some great tunes. ‘Kiebasa’ starts the album with a mild rocker, nothing
special. ‘Tribute’ is the best song on the album, starting with a spoken
intro leading into an acoustic mid-section and finally climaxing in an all
out metal guitar frenzy! ‘Wonderboy’, complete with some 70’s prog rock
synth, takes on the fantasy/superhero genre, as Wonderboy takes on his
arch-nemesis Nastyman! ‘F**k Her Gently’ a mellow ballad, not bad but
nothing special. There is even a tribute to Ronnie Dio, entitled ‘Dio’ -
very funny, with Dio being retired to a old folks home and I am sure Dio
himself approved as Tenacious D appear on a Dio video. A Southern rock
tribute ‘The Road’ rocks along nicely, complete with a Skynyrd-eske guitar
solo. Few filler tracks - ‘City Hall’ drags on at nine minutes, tend to
spoil the album’s flow slightly.
Some great tunes, with only the spoken word interludes proving a
distraction on repeated plays, but at least you can programme them out! If
you get a chance do check out their videos to ‘Tribute’ (with Dave Grohl as
the Devil) and ‘Wonderboy’ (a great satire on Tolkien and fantasy films).
Good to see a band who can play but don’t take themselves too seriously.
Check it out but be advised of very strong language!
http://www.tenaciousd.com
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Review by Jason Ritchie
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