Live Review: Tenacious D + Sasquatch – Sydney Opera House (11.05.13)

Ah, Tenacious D. The infamous rock and roll duo (although perhaps they are best described as a “rock and roll tribute act”), comprised of Kyle Gass and Jack Black were last seen on our shores supporting the Foo Fighters at the end of last 2011. Since then they have released a new record (Rize of the Fenix, to little fervour compared to their earlier works), and now they have returned to bring their spirited and hilarious performance to the Sydney Opera House and other venues around Australia on their “Old School and Acoustic” tour.

I made it just in time to catch the second support act of the night, Sasquatch – not to be confused with the Melbourne band of the similar name. This man is like The Beards of Sasquatches. Dressed as a Sasquatch, the one man band comes on stage and warmly embraces his audience with songs such as ”Yeti for Love” and “You don’t need no shoes to have soul…”, while the set ended in a cover of “Don’t Stop Believing”, which had the crowd singing along. It was a highly entertaining exercise.

This was far from your usual Sydney Opera House show, and perhaps this is why the stylings of Sasquatch worked so well, setting things up nicely for the main attraction. By the time Jack and Kyle walked on stage, indeed the crowd was ready for some D. The duo received a hero’s welcome, and would go on to see more standing ovations than Pavarotti would have in 1983 – coincidentally the last time an overweight male was given such a warm reception in the Sydney Opera House (OK, so that’s probably not true).

Alas, even the D admitted it was a strange fit, “What are we doing here!? Do bands like the D play here often… wait a minute, there ARE no bands like the D!”, but a bow at the end of every song suggested they weren’t going to perform without an extra ounce of class – even if it was done in the tongue and cheek format they feel at home with. And the set was much the same – an entertaining evening of tracks from the band’s latest album, and favourites from their past, with the inclusion of the now legendary moment where Kyle quits the band, and Jack plays the faux saxamaphone. New music, same old tricks. Although why no Sasquatch song!? He was RIGHT THERE!!

But whether the crowd had seen the gags before or not was regardless, this was a HYPED UP crowd who ate up every minute of it; singing along to every song and giving the band countless standing ovations. Some other fun facts about the show: it was the most times the word “fuck” has been said in the venue and also the drunkest crowd recorded in the venue’s memory. Both probably not true, but they would have to come pretty close on both counts. It all made for a terribly entertaining – though strange considering the venue – evening.

They also played homage to the greats on their wireless acoustic guitars, bringing out classics from Led Zeppelin and The Beatles, with a little help from Sasquatch and their roadie along the way, who enjoys a tribute song of his own on the latest record, and in tonight’s set. Naturally, “Tribute” got the biggest applause for the night – though I daresay it was the set closer “Fuck Her Gently” that had the biggest singalong. But you really can’t blame anyone for that. Who wouldn’t want to sing that loud and proud in the Opera House? (Note to self: probably most people. That may just be me…).

The D are a fun band, and though it feels like we’ve seen it all before, that didn’t stop anyone – myself included – from having a fantastic time in the Sydney Opera House.

SETLIST:
Rize of the Fenix
Low Hangin’ Fruit
Señorita
Dude (I Totally Miss You)
Kyle Quit the Band
Friendship
Kielbasa
History
Kickapoo
Saxaboom
Roadie
Rock and Roll (Led Zeppelin cover)
Rock is Dead
The Ballad Of Hollywood Jack And The Rage Kage
To Be The Best
Cosmic Shame
Tribute
Double Team
Encore:
Baby
Medley: You Never Give Me Your Money (The Beatles cover) / The End (The Beatles cover)
Fuck Her Gently

Larry Heath

Founding Editor and Publisher of the AU review. Currently based in Toronto, Canada. You can follow him on Twitter @larry_heath or on Instagram @larryheath.