Dengue Fever

L.A.’s Dengue Fever emerged with perhaps the most improbable origin story of any recent ensemble, even amid the constant cultural mixing found in major cities. A collection of white musicians choosing to revive psychedelic rock classics from Cambodia already seemed unlikely, yet securing an actual Cambodian pop idol to lead the group and deliver vocals in Khmer felt like a stroke of fortune possible only in a handful of global locales. The ensemble took shape in 2001 inside Silver Lake, the trend-conscious Los Angeles neighborhood, after organist Ethan Holtzman’s 1997 journey to Cambodia exposed him to the ’60s Cambodian rock still filling local radios and jukeboxes. A companion on that trip contracted the mosquito-borne illness that later supplied the band’s name, while Holtzman absorbed the music’s fusion of Nuggets-style garage rock and psychedelia, marked by prominent organ, fuzztone guitar, and the swinging pulse of vintage rock and roll, alongside the lush orchestrations of Bollywood soundtracks and the echoing guitar tones typical of surf and espionage scores. Distinctive Khmer vocals and Eastern melodic contours set the style apart from its Western counterparts.

Back in the States, Holtzman shared the inexpensive cassettes with his brother Zac, a central figure in the alt-country collective Dieselhed. The siblings began amassing more Cambodian rock recordings and resolved to form a group dedicated to performing their preferred tracks, many drawn from the Parallel World anthology Cambodian Rocks. The original lineup featured Ethan on Farfisa and Optigan, Zac handling vocals and guitar, bassist Senon Williams of the slowcore band Radar Brothers, drummer Paul Smith, and saxophonist David Ralicke, known for his work with Beck, Ozomatli, and Brazzaville. Ralicke’s parallel fascination with Ethiopian jazz further expanded the band’s international outlook. With this roster in place, the members scoured clubs throughout Long Beach’s Little Phnom Penh district in search of a female vocalist capable of matching the language and phrasing of the original recordings.

After several unsuccessful attempts, the Holtzmans encountered Chhom Nimol, a former Cambodian chart star from a prominent musical dynasty often likened to the Jacksons. The band recalled that Nimol had sung on multiple occasions for the Cambodian royal family prior to relocating to Los Angeles. Initially wary of the group’s intentions, she warmed during rehearsals until the collaboration clicked. Dengue Fever performed publicly for the first time in 2002, with Nimol appearing in full traditional Cambodian attire, quickly attracting Hollywood’s hipster crowd and earning L.A. Weekly’s Best New Band honor that same year. Still functioning primarily as a cover act, the musicians began composing originals after issuing a four-song EP in their hometown. The Holtzmans supplied English lyrics and music, forwarded them to a Khmer translator in Washington state, and then allowed Nimol to reshape both melody and words according to her instincts.

Actor Matt Dillon, an admirer of the band, placed their Khmer-language version of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” on the soundtrack to his 2003 directorial debut, City of Ghosts. Around the same period, Nimol faced detention in San Diego under tightened post-9/11 INS regulations after remaining in the country beyond the terms of her two-week visitor’s visa. She spent three weeks in jail, and nearly a year passed before the band’s attorney obtained a two-year visa for her, with legal costs covered by benefit shows. During this interval Dengue Fever issued its self-titled debut on Web of Mimicry, the label operated by Mr. Bungle guitarist Trey Spruance. The track list consisted chiefly of Cambodian covers, many first popularized by pre-Pol Pot vocalist Ros Sereysothea, along with several originals and one Ethiopian jazz number.

As Nimol’s English improved, the members weighed adding English-language songs to the next album yet chose to retain Khmer for most material in fidelity to the music that had inspired them. In 2007 the band released Escape from Dragon House while also appearing in the documentary Sleeping Through the Mekong, which documented their first performances in Cambodia. Venus on Earth arrived the following year on the M80 imprint before Real World acquired worldwide rights. In 2009 the group issued the CD/DVD package Sleepwalking Through the Mekong, combining the documentary with a compilation of recordings. After signing with Concord in 2010, Dengue Fever delivered Cannibal Courtship in April 2011. For the 2015 album The Deepest Lake, the band turned to crowdfunding via a Pledge Music campaign that ultimately exceeded its target by 40 percent.