Dengue Fever

It’s hard to comprehend the enormity of the destruction that swept through Cambodia in the 1970s. Led by Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge embarked on a systematic wave of murder and violence. It’s estimated that up to a third of the Cambodian population was murdered, with the professional classes – including lawyers, doctors, accountants, engineers – particularly targeted. The country’s social infrastructure was devastated beyond belief – and with it much of Cambodia’s rich cultural history. That history included the Cambodian surf and psychedelic scene, an idiosyncratic marriage of western surf rock and Cambodian tonal music. As the country gradually regains its feet, Dengue Fever are once again putting Cambodian psychedelic surf back on stage, front and centre.

Senon Williams, Dengue Fever’s bass player, first travelled to Cambodia in the 1990s. Tired of hanging out on Thai beaches, he and his girlfriend travelled to Cambodia. Williams was fortunate enough to find a few period Cambodian surf tunes and pondered briefly whether a band that showcased Cambodian rock ‘n’ roll could be put together. Back in Los Angeles, Williams became aware of the fledgling Cambodian expatriate music scene in Long Beach, California. He caught up with his friends Ethan and Zac Holtzman, who’d had a similar idea to his. "They suggested putting a band together doing this stuff, and I thought ‘that’s a bad idea’ – so let’s do it!" Williams laughs.

The Holtzman brothers and Williams put their collective feelers out for a Cambodian singer who could front their band. After a few false starts Chhom Nimol, a young Cambodian singer whose family had escaped to the United States at the height of the Pol Pot regime, came into view. "That first time we met Chhom was the strangest thing," Williams recalls. "Chhom didn’t really trust us, so she brought a bunch of people with her to the audition. And because Chhom didn’t speak English, she had this young Christian girl as her translator. We snuck this girl into this club and there was this punk band humping the stage. And then Chhom comes out in a traditional Cambodian outfit. It was so bizarre!" he laughs.

Chhom Nimol’s father had been an entertainer in the Cambodian music scene in the 1960s, before being forced to flee the Pol Pot regime. Nimol’s background provided the perfect link for Dengue Fever. "The American soldiers had brought rock ‘n’ roll into Cambodia during the Vietnam War, including British and American psychedelia," Williams explains.It didn’t take long for an underground rock ‘n’ roll scene to manifest in the country. "Cambodia and Thailand were both making their own psychedelic music," Williams notes. "There was a total underground scene happening. Cambodia really mixed in its own sounds – you had the distinctive Cambodia singing mixed with rock ‘n’ roll."

Williams had become familiar with the tragic brutality of Pol Pot’s regime during his own travels. "So many people were killed – something like a third of the population was murdered," he muses. "And when you do that, you leave a large gap, so the country is really suffering because of that. It’s going to take a few more generations to recover – though they’re definitely doing better now."

Given the destruction that hit Cambodia, and the Khmer Rouge’s psychotic desire to purify the country of any foreign influence, it’s surprising that any examples of the Cambodian rock ‘n’ roll scene managed to survive. "A lot of Cambodians escaped to the US and France during the Vietnam war," Williams says. "It was a really bleak time, and they took a lot of music with them."

Early in their career Dengue Fever both covered old Cambodian rock tunes, and put out a record featuring long-lost Cambodian rock tunes. "The music luckily survived," Williams says. "Lots of it is nameless and faceless – when we went to put out some of the old music we had to ask Chhom’s sister to help us identify the musicians," he remembers. "I hear there’s stacks of vinyl in France," he adds, "when we were travelling I met this Cambodian kid who had photos of all this vinyl in France."

Dengue Fever have since returned to Cambodia and played to local audiences. Playing in Cambodia was, Williams says, an "incredible" experience. "We went to a country where there was almost no tourism," he points out. "People are like ‘who are you, and why are you here?’ Unlike other places in south-east Asia, Cambodia wasn’t inundated with travellers, and places weren’t set up for travellers." Being American wasn’t a problem, either. "When you’re travelling and you’re part of the counter-culture, then people know what’s up," Williams says. "People can work it out pretty quickly."

As for Chhom, playing in Cambodia was especially emotional. "She’d come to the US initially on a tourist visa and had then stayed on. Eventually she was found out and she was jailed for a month – we thought she’d be deported." Chhom was able to stay in the US and maintain her role in Dengue Fever. "When she travelled home it was very emotional," Williams says. "People in Cambodia expected her to be completely Americanised."

Chhom Nimol has since overcome her initial trepidation at being in a rock ‘n’ roll band and has embraced her lead role in Dengue Fever. The dialectic relationship between Chhom’s Cambodian heritage and the other members’ American history is critical to the ongoing evolution of Dengue Fever. "It’s critical with Chhom as our lead singer," Williams figures. "She now sings in English more. The band’s identity has been a mix between Cambodian and American identity." Williams doesn’t suggest Dengue Fever is trying to play ‘definitive’ Cambodian rock ‘n’ roll. "We’re not purists when it comes to the sound we’re making," he admits. "As a bass player, I’m only interested in trying to create a good sound."

Dengue Fever didn’t start out with philanthropic intentions; the nature of contemporary Cambodia is such that the band has been inevitably drawn into humanitarian efforts to help Cambodia overcome its tragic history. "That definitely did start to happen," Williams says. "People started contacting us, including people from cultural organisations. It’s great to be able to help in whatever way we can."

DENGUE FEVER team up with The Break and Johnnie And The Johnnie Johnnies as part of the Melbourne Festival at The Becks festival Bar at The Forum this Saturday October 16. Tickets and info at ticketmaster.com.au, 136 100 or melbournefestival.com.au.