Live Review: The Fever@Beat Kitchen 5/27/06

Dirty, raw, and filled with bloody truth: The Fever aim to reach their fist out into the crowd and hug you in their brooding world of intrigue. The Fever have experienced a shift of musical focus since their 2003 release of Red Bedroom, and I rather enjoy the new direction. Their way too short opening set was filled with mostly songs from their new album In The City of Sleep, which is noir-filled soundscape where Tom Waits, Nick Cave, and John Lennon drink tea and shoot at carnivale dogs in grainy black and white, as audio tremors travel up you legs and shake your body. Lead singer Geremy Jasper gave a top notch performance, shifting effortlessly between screaming emotional outbursts and sweet sonic melodies, drummer Achilles Tzoulafis hammered out a call for all to bob their heads and stomp their feet, and organist J. Ruggiero layered on the textural harmony with tastes of euphoria and melancholy. Some notable standouts include "Crying Wolf", "Labor of Love" (from Red Bedroom, which got everyone dancing), and "Waiting for the Centipede" (my personal favorite): a dog and pony show anthem sauntering it's way down the dimly lit halls and through the mirrors of the fun house. The Fever brought a dose of high energy and a full force torrent of emotion-filled rock-n-roll. Each song packed a heart filled tortured punch, that left you wanting to hear a few more songs. Despite the time constraints, The Fever definitely tore through their solid set with great ferocity and skill. Hopefully, they will come through Chicago soon with higher billing. If you haven't heard In The City of Sleep, I highly recommend checking it out, especially if you like The Apes, The Features, or Firewater.