Style-bending, out-funk acolytes Chicken Salad are an alchemical sonic assemblage, uniquely blending elements of funk, jazz, hiphop, rock, and contemporary improvisation. A force of sound, the 5-piece instrumental ensemble renders modern yet classic writing, with interweaving lines, innovative blending of modern improvisation with memorable, pop-esque melodies, searing solos, all underpinned by deep and hard hitting rhythm section pocket.
Engineered by bass & beat architect Andrew Mason, The Salad features some of Toronto’s best and brightest players: up front on horns – the sweet toned, agile, and tastily melodic Chris Butcher on trombone, with the primal refinement and richly angular lines of alto sax mastermind, Jake Koffman; in the mid-field, guitar wizard Ben Payne adds his raw tonal sorbet and lyrical liquidity to the Salad’s dressing; in goal, behind the drums, the razor sharp time and unmoveable solidity of adept rhythmist Ed Mortenson protects every corner of the beat foundation, while compositional craftsman Andrew Mason provides both the master blueprints for chaos, and his characteristically lithe and athletic bass playing, filling out the C.S. low end theory at 600 Watts.