- TENACIOUS D: the Spicy Meatball Tour
- Starlight Theater
- Kansas City, Missouri
I first heard of Tenacious D 20-years ago when a friend of mine told me he was going to see the band along with Weezer. The next day he raved about the “D,” and urged me to buy their CD. I did. And I loved it. 20 years later, I finally got to see what I was missing.
Consisting of the always manic Jack Black and the more reserved Kyle Gass, Tenacious D is best described as if Heavy Metal and Classical Music had a baby. Both men are amazing musicians, each note from their guitars hitting your ears clearly. Where Black’s input is mostly power chords, Gass plays as intricately, and as beautifully, as one of my favorite classical gitarists, the late Roy Clark.
For nearly two hours the boys rocked, combining beautifully written music with amazingly strong, often funny, lyrics. Like “Weird” Al Yankovic, Jack Black has an amazingly strong voice, suited for the music he plays and reminiscient of the late, great Ronnie James Dio.
The show also had it’s fun bits, including a recurring bit with the band’s pyro technician who always seemed to set of the effects at the wrong time. Another highligh was the premiere of a new song, scheduled to be released the next day, called “Video Games.” Later, Black produced a Sax-a-Boom, an oversized member of the horn family, Not to be outdone, Gass emerged from the shadows with an enormous MAX-a-Boom and blew a great rendition of the Gerry Rafferty hit “Baker Street.” The group also covered Chris Issak’s “Wicked Games” and did a kick-ass version of Led Zepplin’s “Good Times, Bad Times.”
I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention the D’s opening act, Steel Beans, a literal one-man-band who played guitar, drums and keyboards at the same time. And very well.
SET LIST: Overture, Kickapoo, Low Hangin’ Fruit, Wonderboy, Tribute, Video Games, Rize of the Fenix, The Metal, Sax-a-Boom, Baker Street, Roadie, Dude (I Totally Miss You), Wicked Games, Beelzeboss (The Final Showdown), Double Team. ENCORE: Good Times, Bad Times, Master Exploder, The Spicyt Meatball Song, Fuck Her Gently.
If you’d like to catch the “D” on tour, or learn more about the band, please click HERE.