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A heart to heart with Fever Fever

By Kyle Reisz

"The challenge of being a band today is to be very relational," said Wes Black, guitarist for the Columbus-based rock outfit Fever Fever. The band - Andrew Murfin (vocals), Sam Smith (percussion) and Vince Gaietto (bass) - has been on something of a musical winning streak as of late, which they chalk up to the heart to heart relationships they have with fans. Fever Fever has won eight straight Battle of the Bands competitions, one even out of town, which was no easy task, according to Black.

"Most Battle of the Bands are decided on popularity, so if you're from out of town, it's very hard to win one," he said. Yet Black said what they lacked in local fame, they made up for in friendliness. Instead of hanging out with the other bands in the green room, Fever Fever was out making friends and allies in the audience. "We ended up winning that night by a significant margin," he said with emphasis.

And while building a one-on-one rapport with the audience might be crucial in the new landscape of music media, having a library of solid and catchy tracks doesn't hurt either. For a frame of reference, think Mute Math or Coldplay, just don't get too bogged down in comparisons. Fever Fever is far too eclectic for that.

"We have very diverse interests," Black said of the members' musical stylings, but "the new music doesn't sound as scatterbrained as the first EP did. It's very ambient rock, but with sounds from around the world. It's very progressive, but still kind of spacey at the same time."

To say that "Lovequest," the band's first full-length album, is all of that would be a description at its bare minimum. "Sleep Easy," could easily be a single that rockets the hometown band into rock's collective conscious. While it has a fairly glossy sheen to it, as do most tracks on the disc, there is no escaping the driving piano melody underneath Murfin's warmly delivered vocals, which often lean toward the high end of his register. Don't be surprised when your fingers reach for the repeat button after hearing this one.

By contrast, "Time" is a gigantic, loud and guitar-heavy wall of sound in the vein of Muse or even U2, who Black cited as a major influence. Here, Murfin's vocals, along with all other aspects of the track, are heavier, darker and bursting intensity.

So with a full album now under their belt, Fever Fever is gearing up to take their live show back out to the people. They will be hitting the road on a tour of the New England area this fall and are also planning to try their hand in the Nashville scene.

"We have done all the preliminary work [for the tour]," said Black. "We have a small bus, a trailer, and we're just really ready to go. This fall is really going to be a good test for us, we want to see if we can make it as a band in the real world. It's going to be a big year for us."

Originally Published: February 3, 2010

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