3,000 flock to M.A.C. for singing comedians

Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie of Flight of the Conchords entertain a crowd of more than 3,000 at the M.A.C. Center last night. Katie Young | Daily Kent Stater

Credit: DKS Editors

Students, parents and everyone in between filed into the M.A.C. Center to see Flight of the Conchords, “New Zealand’s fourth most popular digi-folk paradists,” last night.

The crowd of more than 3,000 erupted into applause when two concert-goers dressed in robot costumes took their seats near the front of the stage. The get-ups were near replicas of ones Flight of the Conchords wore in an episode of their self-titled HBO show.

Finally, the lights dimmed and a booming voice came over the speakers and promised the audience that “minds will be blown” and that they will be “showered with awesomeness” by the opening act, Kristen Schaal.

Schaal hopped on stage wearing sparkly gold pants, which she claims she “stole from a genie.” Her goofy, girlish voice contrasted her jokes, which were peppered with bad language. Her material ranged from the tame (government bailouts) to the bizarre (the life of a mattress).

Schaal ended her set with her rendition of an audition for “Law and Order: SVU.” Schaal played the role of a “chubby grocer” and shoved nearly half of a chocolate cake into her mouth. Covered in frosting, Schaal introduced the Kiwi duo, otherwise known as Flight of the Conchords.

Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement took the stage in silver jumpsuits complete with disco balls glued to the crotches of their pants. The two opened the show by playing their club-inspired song about the lack of women on the dance floor, “Too Many Dicks.”

After changing into their street clothes, McKenzie and Clement played songs from both seasons of their show, including crowd favorite “Carol Brown,” which is about Clemet’s ex-girlfriends.

The crowd professed their love for the group, requesting McKenzie and Clement to take off their clothes and complimenting their footwear choices. The pair played along and even reprimanded a man for interrupting another heckler.

Contact on-campus entertainment reporter Katie Young at [email protected].