So, I was listening to the soundtrack of The Pick of Destiny again the other day. When I first saw the intro to the film, the song Kickapoo, I was blown away by its comic musical stylings, the two rock legend cameos and the flawless segue into the theme of the opening sequence. I already enjoyed the brilliant musicianship, but this time I discovered something else.
In the song, young Jack Black performs a rock song of his own for his family, in which he waxes lyrically about his expletive-loaded encounter with a dragon, for which he is admonished by his staunchly religious father Meat Loaf. Of course, all of this is communicated to the audience through song. Black's song is clearly heavy metal, with a classically inspired melody and fantasy lyrics, while Loaf sings soul, with religious lyrics and a bluesy vocal. The fascinating thing is that if you listen to the vocal phrasing and chord progression, the two melodies are actually one and the same. One could easily conclude that the young Jack Black of the film has inherited his musical skills, making the scene an allegory for rock music evolving out of blues and R&B.
I've seen some negative reviews of The Pick of Destiny, and it always sounds like the reviewer was watching a whole different movie. Maybe they just weren't looking hard enough. Where some people see only fart jokes and offensive language, I see all forms of genius.
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