Jimmie's Chicken Shack - Pushing the Salmanilla Envelope
Okay, so maybe this isn't exactly something most of you have never heard of, so much as it's something most have forgotten about.
The mid/late 90's post grunge wave spawned countless bands, one of them being Jimmie's Chicken Shack. The post grunge sound spawned a lot of generic, bland, radio friendly bands who all sounded the same. Fortunately, on Pushing the Salmanilla Envelope, Jimmie's Chicken Shack are able to avoid these musical pitfalls for a number of reasons. The first reason is that the musicians in this band are actually very talented. Most of them have background in funk music, and it is used to full effect. The notorious repetitive power chords that are normally abused by bands in this genre do appear here, but fortunately, these guys use them appropriately and don't completely rely on them, and instead mix it up a bit with some funky rhythms and finger licking guitar solos. The bass guitar is of special note, being very audible and contributes a lot to the funky nature of the album, contributing very creative basslines. Another reason that these guys stand out is because unlike most post grunge bands, THEY ACTUALLY KNOW HOW TO WRITE SONGS. All of the songs stand out in their own way, whether it be the hard rock of "Dropping Anchor", the Rage Against the Machine-esque "Spiderweb", or the funky, bouncy "High", every song has something to offer.
It's a shame they couldn't keep a hold of their unique blend of hard rock and funk displayed here, and instead succumbed to the commercialization of their peers on later releases. This is definitely a great album for those of you seeking a fun, enjoyable hard rock record.
High
Dropping Anchor
Spiderweb