[2] Then a member of Bald Rapunzel (Dischord Records)[4] and living in the Luzon House with other musicians, she was encouraged by bandmate Clark Sabine to form the label to release music from his band The Halo Project.

[5] Schlegel chose the name to project the idea that the label was home to "rare and infectious music," and started with a small catalog of records she was interested in, releasing "100 CDR copies each with cute packaging.

[6] At the time Otto was roommates with Sara Klemm, who was organizing a compilation CD to benefit the DC Books to Prisons chapter she'd founded.

[7] According to Klemm, "at least in the late '90s and early aughts, the D.C. music community was pretty special in how...it supported other non-music related projects.

Bonnie Schlegel left the label not long after its inception, moving to Vermont to raise her daughter and work on her solo project, Edie Moss.

In this year, the label also released a split LP with RedRumsey (Vern Rumsey from Unwound in a solo endeavor/project, and Teach Me Equals.

Also in 2020, the label celebrated its 20th anniversary with a virtual concert featuring Exotic Fever Records' artists raising money for Black and Brown Workers Cooperative.

Other early mentors and associates of the label included Brian Lowit of Lovitt Records,[4] and according to Otto, "I will remain endlessly inspired till I die by the political and cultural work Fugazi did.

As part of their work with Positive Force DC, the label was also involved in the project All Our Power, a three-day gathering concerned with connecting punk and activism.

[4] Through fundraising through compilations and other means, as of 2013 it supports groups such as:[9] As of 2013 the label has released five compilations albums benefiting Vietnam Veterans of America, Helping Individual Prostitutes Survive, District Alliance for Safe Housing, the non-profit animal rights advocacy group Compassion Over Killing, and DC Books to Prisons.

was positively received, and according to a review: "Ranging from warm acoustic ballads to intense punk rock chops, each musician sings intelligent lyrics from the heart.

offers a breath of fresh air to thinking people sadly wandering amidst vapid pop star-worship and destruction of the planet’s resources.