SEACOAST REGION, ME/NH — Roots Rock agitators Dave Hunter and the Seven Hundred have officially announced the release of their debut album, Tamp That Fever Down, dropping on July 7th, 2026 via the artist-run independent label Happy Little Records.
Bringing a crooked gumbo equal parts mournful reflection, brazen feist, and cool resignation to a boil, the band’s unique signature sound finds them sonically untethered. They seamlessly fuse haunted Americana, scrappy Roots Rock, and hypnotic Alternative Country into a multi-layered mosaic fit for a whiskey-soaked all-nighter or a small-town rebellion.
Tamp That Fever Down dishes out hard-won wisdom and cold truths lyrically, all while seducing and hypnotizing the listener musically. Built around virtuosic guitar work, a defiant vocal croon, and a rhythm section that is “tight as a constrictor knot,” the 11-track record comes together to form a deceptively calm uprising.
Dave Hunter describes the new project as a milestone:
“Crowning two decades of acclaimed music making in the amped-Americana vein, [I am] confident this is [my] best album yet, displaying maturity in the songwriting and new levels of musicality in the playing and production.”
Formed in 2025 on the back of two decades of original music-making in the Northeast, Dave Hunter and the Seven Hundred launched their live efforts by recapturing the best songs of Hunter’s former award-winning band, The Molenes, while presenting newly penned tracks in the same amped-up Americana vein.
Through three full-length albums and one EP released between 2005–2015, The Molenes landed on countless “year’s best” lists, reached the Top 40 of the Americana Music Association’s (AMA) radio chart and the Top 20 of the Freeform American Roots (FAR) chart. Their music was featured in movies and network TV shows, playing on radio stations in over a dozen countries worldwide.
Critics have long praised Hunter’s musical output:
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“A Stones-meets-Son Volt gem.” – Jonathan Perry, Boston Globe
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“…One of the best in the not-uncrowded ranks of New England alt-country and country-rock bands… A broadly satisfying mix of country rock, Jayhawks-style folk and good ol’ fashioned honky-tonk.” – Chad Berndtson, Boston Patriot-Ledger
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“Their authentic grasp of roots-rock stylings is fast becoming a joy for the ear to behold.” – Tim Peacock, Whisperin & Hollerin (UK)
Currently playing live dates across the Northeast, Dave Hunter and the Seven Hundred carry the mission forward, taking the music back out to the back roads, dark alleys, and forgotten corners of American life where it matters most.
