Fever 333 brings more of their kinetic frenzied energy, intoxicating melodies, and thrilling blend of Rock and West Coast Hip Hop to their newest album, released October 4, 2024 via Century Media Records under exclusive license from 333 WRECKORDS CREW.
Chaotic and riotous, the Nu Metal Rapcore band belongs to a Mad Max universe, not Earth – in the best way. The album, Darker White asks us to look around and situate ourselves. As a species, we hurt each other, deeply and often. There are no ‘good guys,’ no black or white, and the closest we can get to that is a darker white. Sure, we are doomed, but we have to move, so where can we go from here? According to Fever 333 the answer is to continue to search for justice as exactly who we are: a messy medley of taboos and hope.
Looking back, the Inglewood-based band was formed in 2017 by former Letlive Vocalist Jason Aaron Butler, The Chariot Guitarist Stephen Harrison, and Night Verses Drummer Aric Improta. In 2019, they were nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Performance for “Made An America,” to the pleasant surprise of Rock fans expecting the usual praise for high-grossing Commercial Rock.
Fast forward a few years, Jason Aaron Butler now leads the band with an entirely new lineup; accompanied by Drummer Thomas Pridgen (The Mars Volta, Thundercat, Trash Talk), Bassist April Kae, and Guitarist Brandon Davis. Their use of powerful symbolism, bulletproof vests, and Black Panther iconography album art remind us of our deep history of human rights abuse. The “333″ in the name represents their three core principles: community, charity, and change. As Butler stated in a 2019 interview, “Change is the overarching theme, right? Something that we can talk about and all we want. But I think action and actual participation in the change you want to see is most important.”
In short, the visceral storytelling in Darker White enforces participation. “Bull & A Bullet” and “Do or Die” get you revved up about convict labor and the dehumanizing workload in America for those “at the bottom of your top damn view.” Repetitive uncanny phrases like, “You might be at home when they kill you” (on the third track, “No Hostages”), hammer in a sense of hopeless fear, even to those who do not live with it daily. This is even more explicit with lyrics such as, “Is that the way the system was designed? That’s how they built this shit!”
Many of these songs will reignite the anger in your deepest core and are delivered surprisingly delicately in a genre-bending medley. For example, “Swing,” swings (pon intended) between R&B, Panic at the Disco type Emo-Rock, Trap, and scream-singing. With lyrics like “wearing Tupac tees and bumping Morrissey” and “It was all a dream,” the opening track, “New West Order,” acts as an ode to their unique West Coast Hip Hop and Hard Rock crossover. Truthfully, this is a bold enduring aspect of the band.
Fever 333’s music is triggering addicting and healing. When they have us right where they want us, worn out, drowsy, and forgetful, Fever 333 helps us remember the fight. That is why Cryptic Rock gives Darker White 4 out of 5 stars.
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