The Fervor
Louisville, Kentucky, United States | INDIE
Music
Press
“As Natalie Felker so eloquently puts it, “We're born again.” - Performer Magazine
“From the first moments of "Overexposure" — the opening track on this five song
EP — Natalie Felker's piano line and bruised but pretty vocals dig a 5-foot trench
in your skull. These songs stick around awhile, whirling narratives and character
sketches around your brain." - Joshua Hammann / Velocity Weekly
“The Fervor bases its lyrical majesty in poetic backgrounds and appreciation for
language and music.” - Leslie Benson / NUVO Weekly
Husband-wife team Natalie and Ben Felker have created a prelude to a
masterpiece, a surprisingly original batch of tunes clever and heartfelt, witty and
crushing, all with an otherworldly musical presence ... - Stephen George / LEO Weekly
“Coupled with a fantastic sense of urgency in the indie pop world, The Fervor
manages to coast through a self- titled release that is perhaps one of the better
exports from Kentucky yet this year.” - Smother.net
Louisville’s The Fervor combines the twilight sway of Velvet Underground’s first album with Classic Rock-informed song arrangements and contemporary Indie Rock sonics for a mesmerizing, emotive sound that creeps and builds like a gathering storm.
The now-foursome has been together since 2005, formed around the plush, bewitching vocals and churning piano of frontwoman Natalie Felker. Since its 2008 debut full-length, “Bleeder,” The Fervor has stayed busy with consistent regional tour dates, including shows with Cincinnati faves Wussy (the two bands released a limited-edition split 7-inch single for Louisville’s Karate Body Records) and work on a sophomore album, due soon. - CityBeat (Cincinnati)
Until Thursday, The Fervor was my “Why-the-hell-have-I-not-seen-this-band-live-band.” They no longer have that title. Instead, they are now just one of my favorite local bands. They are a little like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs because their lead singer is a woman and a little like My Morning Jacket because they are awesome. Donning a gold mask, lead singer, Natalie Felker, belted siren-esque lyrics over a percussion section that was ridiculous. Wrap all that up with a solid rock n’ roll finish, and you’ve got The Fervor. They are playing a free 4th Street Live show with Squeeze-bot on September 18th and another free show at the Nachbar on September 19th. Go to one of these shows. Or both. - Backseat Sandbar
BY AARON JENTZEN
Over droning guitars, strings and simple changes reminiscent of the Velvet Underground's "Heroin," vocalist Natalie Felker toys with a phrase: "So long as it all stays the same ..." It's tempting to think of that phrase as a mantra for her band, The Fervor, whose debut album, Bleeder, gains much of its resonance and poignancy from staying pretty much the same throughout.
The Fervor hails from Louisville, Ky., and released a self-titled EP in 2005. Originally the husband-and-wife duo of Natalie and guitarist Ben Felker, the band expanded to include drummer Mat Herron and bassist Michael Campbell -- the lineup that's on a tour stopping at Gooski's on Mon., April 7.
Bleeder is a gorgeous, slow-moving mess: perfect, lazy backbeats overlaid with keyboards, laconic vocals and washes of alternately chiming and fuzzed-out guitar. The album-opener, "Moment of Truth," had me from the first note. Over a droning organ intro, Natalie drops a dispassionate depth charge: "The moment of truth / of which no such words should pass those lips / sleepin' sound in the den of faithless whores / I realized my fate was settled at the foot of those doors." Drums build; guitars descend like birds of prey; the song lurches off toward the horizon.
It's intense and dramatic music, but so muted, so reined in, that it doesn't present an emotional landscape of peaks and valleys so much as a dreamscape where, as Bob Dylan sang, "everything stays down where it's wounded." Sure, there are a few changeups and surprises, such as when "Old State Road" turns on a dime from druggy and daydreaming to determined and driven. But for the most part, The Fervor "stays the same." And sometimes that's just perfect.
The Fervor with The Mack and The Chad Sipes Stereo. 9 p.m. Mon., April 7. Gooski's, 3117 Brereton St., Polish Hill. $5. 412-681-1658 - Pittsburgh City Paper
“If Natalie Felker’s voice doesn’t haunt you after one listen, buddy, you can’t be haunted.” —Jeffrey Lee Puckett - The Louisville, Ky. Courier-Journal
… Natalie Felker is the Karen Carpenter of indie rock - No Depression
Discography
EP (2005, Self-Released)
Bleeder CD (2007, Self-Released)
Louisville Is For Lovers Vol. 9 (2009, Louisville Is For Lovers/Karate Body)
The Green Belt b/w Wussy (2009, Karate Body)
Louisville Is For Lovers Vol. 10 (2010, Louisville Is For Lovers)
Arise, Great Warrior (2011, Removador Recordings & Solutions/Karate Body)
Photos
Bio
Natalie Felker looks the listener straight in the eye, via her piano and supple voice, and talks you into accepting the dagger … because you know full well that it’s two-sided, and that she’ll accept the other blade. As husband Ben’s guitars start up a sharp squall, you hear why it’s worth the cost: One listen to the bright voices coming in all around to surround you in a reassuring embrace and you’re ready to pick up the dare, the challenge.
Louisville’s The Fervor has formed around this pair — her voice and keys, his guitar and harmony. Right from the start, Natalie was capable of facing up to piano-based alternative divas such as Fiona Apple — but with the skill and resolve to wrest the inspiration from the affectation. Natalie could be the flirt who always said upfront something more honest than your carefully crafted thoughts. Or she could drop her voice low and quiet, be your confidant and your gospel-chord-pounding witness to raw self-confrontation.
Sharpening the focus of the project, the group added drummer Mat Herron and set out on a slew of live shows in 2007 to support of its first full-length, Bleeder. Michael Campbell was found to play bass and they criss-crossed the eastern half of the United States. As they developed their live show, the group began realize their power as a collective entity. Meanwhile Natalie continued to craft strong new songs for a band that was moving forward toward bringing light to mysteries of personality and intimacy — but without any pretense of a definitive answer and far removed from any calming platitudes.
In a culmination of this spirit, the group took these new songs to San Francisco and began tracking what would become Arise, Great Warrior. The sessions would confirm the re-birth of band. Under the arm of producer Charles Gonzalez, the band traveled between Mission Bells and Radical Sound studios. Between these two facilities, The Fervor found the classic gear and physical ambiance that would help them realize the album they had been hearing. Tracking took place in a single room, with members focused on performance rather than perfection. West coast style had infiltrated the camp and greeted like a long lost friend. In many ways the band felt like they were bringing home their first album. Indeed, as a collective, they were.
After 15 days, they returned home to Louisville, where longtime friend and engineer Kevin Ratterman (My Morning Jacket, California Guitar Trio, Wax Fang) helped finish what they started. Still the focus was on the power of what The Fervor could do together in a room. Sounds were mixed down to analog tape, and editing forgone in favor of a recording that is upfront with its humanity.
From these sessions has emerged “Arise, Great Warrior.” A record that is gut-punching in impact, but life-affirming in its lasting spark and hopeful mysteries.
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