Tenacious D 11/24/06 @ UIC Pavilion

Here's a Review From The Chicago Tribune by Bob Gendron, Do You Agree or Disagree?

Tenacious D's ode to outlandishness
By Bob Gendron
Special to the Tribune Published November 27, 2006

Merging elements of Cheech & Chong, "Spinal Tap" and "Wayne's World," and mixing in original dashes of self-conscious irreverence and chest-thumping farce, Tenacious D has become nearly as fabled as the exaggerated rock mythology the duo reverentially lampoons.The cult band's folk-based hard-rock songs feed off the loud-calm dynamic of its plump members, Jack Black and Kyle Gass, actors whose substitute-gym-class-teacher physiques belie their musical competence.

Performing a 110-minute skit-driven concert Friday night at UIC Pavilion just days after the opening of its underwhelming film "The Pick of Destiny," Tenacious D paid tribute to nearly every outlandish heavy-metal convention imaginable, be it dealing with the devil, strumming tear-jerking power ballads or hurling braggadocio boasts.Black and Gass began with an acoustic set staged in the latter's apartment, the guitarists/vocalists goofing with Spanish-accented riding tunes ("History"), a children's toy saxophone ("Saxaboom") and odes to sexual prowess ("Kielbasa"). Despite appearances by the pair's stoner pal, Lee, the potty humor and sketch routines grew stale until Black handed his low-key foil an electric guitar constructed out of dangling wires and a toilet seat, inciting a mock electrocution that killed the duo and sent them to hell, changing the scenery and sparking the pace. Against a steaming volcanic backdrop, Tenacious D and its newly recruited fellowship of pop-culture superstars -- guitarist The Antichrist; drummer Colonel Sanders; bassist Charlie Chaplin -- enlarged their sound, the electricity invoking Black's inner physical-comedy demon. Reveling in his larger-than-life persona, Black took over as an excitable boy whose body-vibrating shakes, clutches-of-evil gestures and snarled expressions complemented his operatic trills and sensitive croon.A true believer, Black vividly embraced his defender-of-faith guise during "The Metal," karate-chop kicking while snarling about how multiple genres attempted to overthrow his favorite style and failed. Soon after, he won a rock-off contest against a step-dancing Satan on "Beelzeboss (The Final Showdown)."Tenacious D took its craft seriously and yet, to make certain nobody in the decent-size crowd thought it was above the outrageous concept, saved the best spoof for its most conceited song. The duo lip-synced the self-referential "Master Exploder," a move that simultaneously acknowledged its admiration of genuine rock gods and deferential status as a fantasy band to which all mortals can relate.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/chi-0611270024nov27,1,1949872.story