Tenacious D
The Pick Of Destiny

THE REVIEW

Jack Black, in addition to being an excellent actor characterized by his unique gestures and mimicry, is also a decent musician and a great composer. His creation, Tenacious D, encompasses what embodies this versatile and stocky artist: namely, rock and a strong sense of humor. Two elements that, along with his inseparable companion Kyle Gass, he will mix to create an improbable and rowdy guitar duo heavily inspired by folk rock and their absolute idols: Black Sabbath.

More than two rockers, they seem like two boisterous overweight minstrels, who, certainly not blessed with the physique of various Steven Tyler or David Lee Roth, or the stage presence of Angus Young or Jimmy Page, compensate for this significant lack with a great desire to play rock and become the greatest band on the planet.

"The Pick of Destiny" is nothing other than their second work, (following the self-titled album containing jewels like "Dio" "Wonderboy" and the splendid "Tribute"), from which the film directed by Liam Lynch (also the author of several tracks) will then be taken. The story of TPOD (a concept album) begins in the forgotten provincial town of Kickapoo (title of the first track) where young JB, confined by an ultra-bigoted family to a life of a god-fearing moralist, runs away from home (as suggested by his idol Ronnie James - indeed - Dio) disobeying his father's rules (none other than Meat Loaf) to follow his dream of going to Hollywood and becoming a great rock star. The album, which might be more accurately described as a rock musical, spans through moments more hard rock (Master Exploder, Break In-City) and more folk (Classico, History) until it reaches the grand finale "Beelzeboss" (the best part of the album) which encapsulates in a single song the journey undertaken by the band from the beginning. In this last part, the two find themselves dueling in a rock contest against Satan himself, masterfully interpreted by Dave Grohl, leader of Foo Fighters, to save their souls and thus manage to write the most beautiful song in history. The last two tracks do not add anything particularly special to this entertaining rock album: namely the title track, with a very simple riff and catchy chorus, and "The Metal" which teases the tough and pure of heavy metal in a strongly ironic tone.

Besides listening to the album, I recommend watching the film, which in some episodes is hilarious thanks also to the contributions of actors like Ben Stiller and Tim Robbins, in addition to the aforementioned Grohl, Dio, and Meat Loaf. I would add nothing else except to say that it's certainly not a masterpiece, but a well-played album that's more enjoyable if you're amused by the zany comedy of Jack Black.