The memory of the great West spends its time roaming the lonesome road of sub-pop culture searching for its comeback. Though its rough and tumble days of wild lawlessness sometimes seem like a wholesome footnote in our history compared to the cyber anarchy of the 21st century, there are still champions of the time who hearken to its zeitgeist. Th' Legendary Shack Shakers are such champions.
Their latest single “RAWHIDE!”, featuring Jello Biafra, off their forthcoming album, Cockadoodledeux, proves that being all about the bass is a tonal stance rather than a physical figuratism. The rolling of the upright bass and reverb of J.D Wilkes vocals chases the listener through the planes past the Shack Shakers Southeastern roots. The signature darkness of the band’s southern gothic influence shoots to the heart. It's a real pistol of a diddy that is haunting as it is catchy.
If the song itself isn’t enough to transport the listener, the video features a fun combination of old Western footage and animation that puts you back in the days of nickelodeons, shoot-outs and saloons. The animation feels like it was tailored to the song, but is actually from the pilot Long Gone Gulch. “RAWHIDE!” is a clever tie-in of the show’s main character that breathes more like a homage than a promo. The song could serve as a solid theme for the series when it gets picked up (Hunnypot’s pulling for y’all!). The show’s creators Tara Billinger and Zach Bellissimo collaborated on the band’s 2017 video “Sing a Worried Song”, if the animation feels familiar to fans of the Legendary Shack Shakers. It’s a bit of a wink for a wink in since the featured centipede-lead band was in fact inspired by the Shack Shakers.
For those who are fatigued by the 21st century's obsession with 3D visuals and sonic computation, “RAWHIDE!” is an exciting taste of what was and what’s to come. The West won’t rest, so y’all better keep a sharp eye out for both Th' Legendary Shack Shakers new album Cockadoodledeux (Oct 8th, 2021) and Long Gone Gulch.
--Robyn Dee
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