Dengue Fever Brings Cambodian Rock to the World & Houston

(Above: Houston Matters producer Michael Hagerty poses with Chhom Nimol, lead singer of the band Dengue Fever, and Paul Smith, the band’s drummer.)

When the Los Angeles band Dengue Fever got together, the group set out to resurrect an obscure, often forgotten form of Cambodian rock – and to do it in the US. Needless to say, it started off as an experiment, but it lead to a successful career and critical success in the world and indie music scenes.

The band recently performed in Houston in conjunction with the Asia Society, and Houston Matters’ Michael Hagerty caught up with a couple band members who described how they found the one key element that gave them the credibility to perform Cambodian rock, both in the US and in Cambodia.

Songs Featured in This Story:

Yol Aularong – Jeas Cyclo (Ride Cyclo)
Chhom Nimol Performs A Capella in Philadelphia
Dengue Fever – Seeing Hands, from the album In The Ley Lines
Dengue Fever -Â One Thousand Tears Of A Tarantula, from the album Escape from Dragon House
Dengue Fever -Â Tooth and Nail, from the album Venus on Earth
Dengue Fever -Â Sleepwalking Through the Mekong, from the album Escape from Dragon House