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Pop & Hiss

In Rotation: Dengue Fever’s ‘Cannibal Courtship’

By Randall Roberts
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It’s a strange terrain that Dengue Fever wanders, drawing as it does both from classic Southern California surf music, and, more important, the sounds of those same pre-Beatles beach tones as filtered through Cambodian pop music of the 1960s and ‘70s. If that seems a ridiculous non sequitur on paper, coming out of the speakers, the L.A. band’s music makes perfect sense. On this, their third studio album, Dengue Fever has refined its sound to the extent that the six-piece is no longer a vehicle for a curious cultural collision, but for a fluent conversation that sounds positively Esperantan. Chhom Nimol, a Cambodian by birth, has become an exquisitely expressive singer; her high-lonesome wail on songs like “Sister In the Radio” conveys a sadness that transcends language (she sings it in Cambodian). And brothers Ethan and Zac Holtzman craft guitar lines, keyboard clusters and arrangements that consistently meander down mysterious pathways.

-- Randall Roberts

Dengue Fever
“Cannibal Courtship”
(Fantasy Records)

Pop & Hiss
Randall Roberts

Former staff writer Randall Roberts covered Los Angeles music culture for the Los Angeles Times. He had served various roles since arriving at The Times in 2010, including music editor and pop music critic. As a staff writer, he explored the layered history of L.A. music, from Rosecrans and Sunset to Ventura Boulevard and beyond. His 2020 project on the early Southern California phonograph industry helped identify the first-ever commercial recording made in Los Angeles.

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