Dengue Fever is anything but your average indie-rock combo. Based in Los Angeles, the exotic six-piece outfit is fronted by Chhom Nimol, who sings in her native Cambodian dialect, backed by guitarist Zac Holtzman, his brother Ethan (keyboards), Senon Williams (bass), David Ralicke (horns) and Paul Smith (drums). Some photos of the boys in the band from their three previous albums look like they’ve come from Homeland Security’s no-fly list. In reality, Dengue Fever may be the best U.S. cultural ambassadors to Southeast Asia since the glory days of jazz stars Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and John Coltrane 50 years ago. The band’s “new” album, Dengue Fever Presents Electric Cambodia (Minky), spotlights vintage performances by its favorite Cambodian artists from the late ’60s/early ’70s. Dengue Fever will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our Q&A with them.
Paul Smith: Nothing beats the feeling of slaying an audience, especially when the pressure is on. Knowing that you put in the hard work, showed up onstage with one goal in mind, then met that goal is fucking rad! I love it when I lose my sense of self onstage, then open my eyes to the realization that the audience is right there with you in that magical bubble. And the cathartic aspect of it is the cheapest form of therapy that I know of.
Video after the jump. Photo by Jaymz Eberly.
