Ugly Guitar Truth: Tenacious D; Post-Apoclypto

I am going off script here a little bit. I have written about artists before, but I would like to take a little time to talk about something I have some strong feelings about. That thing is Tenacious D. I became aware of the group around the turn of the millennia and they have been a mystery wrapped in an enigma wrapped in metal ever since. Is there lastest venture into "animation" the next logical step in the evolution of a band that has never made sense, to begin with? Or, is this a desperate attempt by two middle-aged men to stay relevant? Let's discuss:

The Start:

I became aware of Tenacious D when I was watching MTV. Their video for "Tribute". It made no sense what so ever. I was younger and unaware of many of the tropes and cliches that they were playing off of. So you can imagine I was completely befuddled by what I witnessed. Jack Black was an actor I recognized from a handful of bit roles, this seemed to be a continuation of the character that he had established in many of his movie roles. I had no idea if this was a one-off video for laughs or a hard left in his career. Little did I know that Tenacious D was before everything.

Dark Times

Jack Black is the face of Tenacious D. He is loud and flamboyant making him the focal point of the duo. Kyle "KG" Gass seemed happy to be in the background supplying guitar mastery alongside the loudmouth of Black. While JB's continued making movies, the D fell silent. While the faithful few can recite the path the group made through these time, most casual fans just assumed that the D was done. After their feature-length movie, "The Pick of Destiny", many assume this was the underwhelming climax to the arch of the D.

Rising Again.

I regret all of the innuendoes. That leads us to now. Post-Apocalypto. Let's be totally honest with ourselves. This is a crudely animated scripted(?) podcast with JB and KG. For fans of Tenacious D, this is amazing. There are many casual fans that are falling back into love with Tenacious D. Many more are just now finding Tenacious D for the first time via YouTube. YouTube and Tenacious D might just be a match made in heaven (or hell, but you know, the good way...) During an interview, JB said that they have complete creative control, which is the only way I would think that they would create anything.

Conclusion

As long as there is are those that oppose the current state of the contemporary music, Tenacious D will continue to be in the collective consciousness of many. They spit in the face a modern convention and still find success.