Riffs on Rock and Its Stars: This Is Still Spinal Tap

Triumphantly embarking upon yet another brilliantly doomed comeback, the members of veteran metal-mongers Spinal Tap hit the Greek Theatre stage with a mighty thud on Friday, reclaiming the majesty of rock with their signature misplaced optimism.

Following a mercifully brief set by ‘60s folk trio the Folksmen, the group kicked off its “Back From the Dead” tour under a spectacularly appropriate half-moon.

Curiously, singer-guitarist David St. Hubbins, lead guitarist Nigel Tufnel and bassist Derek Smalls--together with longtime keyboardist C. J. Vanston and yet another drummer foolishly defying the legendary death curse for a shot at the brass ring of anonymity--appeared slightly smaller than larger-than-life.

In fact, they looked absolutely life-size while performing such classics as “Hell Hole,” “Rock and Roll Creation” and a freshly dirtied funk version of the naughty “Sex Farm,” complete with brass section.

Neither technically adept nor philosophically insightful, the players’ mediocre chops proved durably resilient as they reproduced cliche upon heavy-metal cliche with mindless enthusiasm.

Although the 90-minute set offered favorites spanning its 34-year recording career, the Tap showed a flash of contemporary irrelevance with the new, goth-flavored battle cry “Back From the Dead,” available only via the Internet. “A free download,” Smalls sneered. “Take that, Metallica!”

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Tightly paced and brightly lit, but disappointingly devoid of pyrotechnics, the show had almost everything a Taphead could want. Joining this celebration of pointless longevity were such guests as guitarists Dweezil Zappa and Ry Cooder, as well as veteran fiddler Richard Greene. A veritable bass orgy convened for the grand “Big Bottom” finale, featuring all three Tappers along with actor Stephen Collins on the stringed rhythm instruments, plus extra bottom notes from tuba-ist Freebo.

Indeed, the Tap’s enduring legacy is nothing short of astonishing. Especially considering that the group’s history is as bogus as it is ignominious, being entirely the creation of actor-comedians Michael McKean (St. Hubbins), Christopher Guest (Tufnel) and Harry Shearer (Smalls)--who also played the Folksmen--as seen in the 1984 “rockumentary” “This Is Spinal Tap.”

Their satire has well outlasted many of the bands it skewered, yet its familiar jokes remained funny, and new twists fit the Tap myth perfectly. The performance reinforced the principals’ still-unequaled comedic talents and attention to detail in mocking a genre that, as has often been said, is so full of inadvertent self-parody. Ironically, then, despite its inauthenticity, Spinal Tap still had genuine lessons to teach.