2022, Music, TV

South Park 25th Anniversary Concert

South Park premiered just before my 16th birthday. Though it took me a little while to watch it, I was at the very right age for it. I was still 16 when BASEketball came out and I was only 17 when Bigger, Longer & Uncut premiered. I was only 23 when Team America was released. What I’m saying is that I was an impressionable age when South Park became a cultural phenomenon, and I was also a teenage boy. Additionally, I like Primus and I am a pretty big Ween fan. So, you might say this concert was made for me.

This is a celebratory concert of South Park existing as long as it has, focusing mostly on the music of the show, with a little bit of music from Primus and Ween, and a song each from two other Parker/Stone movies. There is a also a special guest performance from a certain famous Canadian band (or 2/3rds of it) that you might have heard about.

It’s pretty clear that Parker and Stone (especially Parker, when they first walked on stage) were kind of in awe that they were performing at Red Rocks, their local notable music venue, with bands they are fans of. And that awe is kind of endearing. But these two are fairly incapable of being sincere and so that quickly fades away to a parade of songs from the show, about farts and “fuck” and other things.

Some of these songs are performed fairly close to the originals, some of them are performed in cliche arena rock renditions. There was one new one, I believe, and there was one new spin on a Primus song, and otherwise the music from Primus and Ween is straight up.

I can imagine thoroughly enjoying myself had I been there. But there was also a Live a the Hollywood Bowl feel to much of it, more “hey I know these lyrics!” than something more interesting and new. That’s their prerogative, of course, but it also made the show entirely for fans only. (Again, I think that was the point.)

Anyway, I enjoyed myself. But it’s not anything anyone who hasn’t watched most of the show needs to watch.

6/10

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