My quest of Dengue Fever began when I first purchased Cambodian Rocks compilation, which catalogued heavily upon Sinn Sisamouth, whose work in turn was a huge influence on this band. This present-day Cambodian psychedelic band aptly named Dengue Fever is spearheaded by Ethan Holtzan (Farfisa organ) and his brother, Zac (Vocal/Guitars).

The inspiration came after a trip to Cambodia and listening to all these tapes of local musicians that blended traditional Khmer music with Western Rock n Roll. They were joined by Senon Williams (Bass), Paul Smith (drum), and David Ralicke (Brass). Rounding out the line-up is a famous Cambodian vocalist, Chhom Nimol who was singing at a Long Beach nightclub before being asked (repeatedly) to join the band. The band’s music and live performance evoke the nostalgic feel of a third world culture mostly due to her stage presence, having been a singer for royal families and coming from a family of wedding singers.

Their first self-titled album contained mostly cover of famous Cambodian songs such as Chnam Aun 16 (I’m sixteen) and Sra Muy Keo (Drink Wine) which they did an amazing job in.

It was their second album ‘Escape from Dragon House’ that really catapulted them into the spotlight. The story behind it was that Nimol had to sing in a nightclub named Dragon House to pay off her legal fees after having been detained for an immigration problem.

Their latest album, Venus On Earth, departs a bit from the previous. It has more English tracks for one. It also has more tongue-in-cheek as evident in ‘Tiger Phone Card’ and ‘Sober Driver’ and is more mellow. When the band had a chance to perform in Cambodia, they did a documentary entitled Sleepwalking Through the Mekong (based on the same song in Escape From Dragon House).