Fever 333 vocalist Jason Butler sat down with NME this past weekend to discuss the various happenings with his band. Among the topics covered were his friendship with alternative metal favorites Deftones and Fever 333‘s sophomore studio album.
You may recall last month when Butler was invited to join Deftones onstage for a performance of “Headup” at the ‘Mad Cool‘ festival in Madrid, Spain (see footage here.) Speaking of that, the high-flying vocalist offered:
“We’re homies now so I was just watching. He didn’t tell my anything, he just beckoned me and was like, ‘Come sing this part’. At that moment, I turned back into a fan. I crowdsurfed, crossed the barrier, got on stage, and got to grab the mic.
Honestly, it was like a dream. It’s not real to me. They’re quite literally the reason I said I wanted to start playing rock music in a band was because I saw Chino [Moreno, Deftones vocalist] jump off the PA stack at the Velodrome at North Ridge at the 1996 Warped Tour. I happened to walk in and saw that. He had the high socks, the Dickies down to here, bleached hair. I was like, ‘I want to do that’.
To go from that to becoming a huge fan, then to be on stage with them singing a song from ‘Around The Fur‘ – it’s beyond a full-circle moment. It’s like a simulation. It’s broken but it’s benefitting me in that moment.”
When asked by NME if he would like to collaborate with Deftones one day, he replied:
“That would be cool. I feel like Chino is the one person that I observe as being truly authentic about the hybrid; really understanding hip-hop, rap, rock, trip-hop, and these things that I find to be extremely attractive in alternative music and putting them all together. He’s one of the best to ever do it, so I wouldn’t be opposed to it.”
When the topic shifted to Fever 333‘s next studio album, Butler had some encouraging news for fans of the experimental rap metal activists:
“It’s there. I’m wrapping the album in the next month, and I’m very excited about it,. All self-aggrandizing elements aside, for better or for worse and whether people love it or hate it, I feel like I’ve created my idea of a genre-defining album that I’ve wanted to hear my whole life.
I’ve finally created songs and elements of what that really means to me. I’m really excited to offer something that doesn’t necessarily fit into a place but rather runs concurrently in the progress that is art and music. Something in its own lane hopefully.”
Butler went on to describe the album as a hybrid of “punk rock, rock’n’roll, metal, hardcore, rap, hip-hop, spoken word, a little bit of trip-hop, a little bit of break.” He continued, “I’m really finding a space that’s authentic to me and then applying it, versus genre-sampling and taking things off the shelf, throwing them in the pot and hoping they work. These are the most authentic representations I can offer.” He also spoke of the direction of the lyrical content on the record, stating:
“All of the previous Fever stuff was observational, what I saw and what I studied. This time, this is what I’ve experienced, these are my truths. It’s the first time I’m actually talking about myself within it, rather than all of us. Although it’s microcosmic, we’re all interconnected so my story does relate to others in some way. I’ve taken that leap to disclose my own relationship with the things I’ve lamented in the past.”
According to Butler fans can expect to hear some new material from the album before the end of the year, with the record itself following in 2023. You can find more from Butler over at NME.
Comments