Dengue Fever's psychedelic take on the Cambodian pop sounds of the 60s makes them one of rock'n'roll's most unique success stories. They draw enthusiastic crowds from LA to the UK, from Maui to Moscow, and leave critics rummaging through their thesauruses looking for new superlatives to describe their sound. The band's latest release, the documentary feature film Sleepwalking Through The Mekong (DVD/CD Soundtrack) continues the story and evolution of the band as they travel to Cambodia as the first Western group to perform the music of Cambodia since the fall of the Khmer Rouge. Sleepwalking Through The Mekong has received an enthusiastic reception at international film festivals, as well as the Tucson Film Festival, the Silver Lake Film Festival in Los Angeles, the Hawaii International Film Festival and the Margaret Mead Film Festival in New York. ...show more

Dengue Fever's psychedelic take on the Cambodian pop sounds of the 60s makes them one of rock'n'roll's most unique success stories. They draw enthusiastic crowds from LA to the UK, from Maui to Moscow, and leave critics rummaging through their thesauruses looking for new superlatives to describe their sound. The band's latest release, the documentary feature film Sleepwalking Through The Mekong (DVD/CD Soundtrack) continues the story and evolution of the band as they travel to Cambodia as the first Western group to perform the music of Cambodia since the fall of the Khmer Rouge. Sleepwalking Through The Mekong has received an enthusiastic reception at international film festivals, as well as the Tucson Film Festival, the Silver Lake Film Festival in Los Angeles, the Hawaii International Film Festival and the Margaret Mead Film Festival in New York.

Brothers Ethan (keyboards) and Zac (guitar) Holtzman started Dengue Fever in 2001 when they discovered they shared a love for the Cambodian pop music of the 60s. After adding sax man David Ralicke (Beck/Brazzaville), drummer Paul Smith and bassist Senon Williams, they went looking for a Cambodian singer. Enter Chhom Nimol, who performed regularly for the King and Queen of Cambodia. Her powerful singing, marked by a luminous vibrato that adds exotic ornamentations to her vocal lines, and hypnotic stage moves based on traditional dances, complemented the band's driving Cambodian/American sound.

The Cambodian pop music of the 1960s seems an unlikely template for an American band, but that sound captivated Ethan Holtzman during a trip to Cambodia in 1997. Before he flew back to L.A., he picked up every cassette of Cambodian pop from the 60s he could find. Back home, Zac Holtzman had just returned to L.A. after living in San Francisco for 10 years. ...show less