Khmer/American psychedelic rock n roll group Dengue Fever last week announced that they’ll be touring to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam in November of this year.

Dengue Fever are a unique ensemble formed of 5 musicians: Khmer singer Chhom Nimol, who left Cambodia to live in the USA, brothers Ethan and  Zac Holtzman, Senon Williams, Paul Smith  and David Ralicke. Their style is a groovy and upbeat combination of haunting lyrics in Khmer language with upbeat psychedelic rock and jazz sounds.

As part of the upcoming “Electric Mekong tour”, Dengue Fever are set to play in Cambodia in the capital Phnom Penh, Sihanoukville, Battambang and Siem Reap, Hanoi in Vietnam and Vientiane in Laos.

The group has a strong following among Southeast Asians and Southeast Asian enthusiasts alike: I’m a massive fan myself, and saw them live at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London in 2008. They have so musical energy and a strong sense of fun and mischief that comes across in their tunes, and Chhom Nimol is a small woman with huge stage presence and a ferocious voice to match.

Dengue Fever’s distinctive style actually has roots in the global explosion of pop culture in the 20^th Century: Cambodia prior to Pol Pot in the 60s was swinging to the beats of popular tunes from home-grown Khmer rock n roll musicians.

Cambodia was the coolest place in Southeast Asia: considering the general political and social unrest in the rest of Southeast Asia in the 1960s that hadn’t yet disturbed Cambodia at this point, Cambodians had more of a chance to cultivate this new popular culture than their neighbours.

The cities became a hub for local musicians who were inspired by western acts like Elvis Presley and The Beatles, and adapted these sounds into their own unique style of music, creating rock with a very Khmer touch. The 1960s and 70s is considered a time of cultural renaissance in Cambodia where new and popular forms of youth culture emerged, just as it did in many other countries around the world.

One of the most well-known and popular stars was Ros Serey Sothea, once dubbed Cambodia’s “golden voice”. Hailing from the small town of Battambang in Cambodia’s north west, Ros Serey Sothea joined forces with male singer Sinn Sisamouth and together they took the country by storm.

Serey Sothea produced more traditional Cambodian ballads early on in her career moving to much more psychedelic sounds in the late 60s and early 70s. Sisamouth was famous for his jazzy voice, and is known for introducing a number of Western songs into Cambodia, including House of the Rising Sun and Santana’s Black Magic Woman, by re-writing the lyrics into Khmer.

One of the key features of Khmer rock songs is the stark contrast between the high-energy, pumping guitars and rhythm, and lyrics that typically speak of deep melancholy and heartbreak. Some lyrics are playful and flirtatious but also contain a hint of subtle sarcasm. For example, the chorus from Serey Sothea’s song Chnam Oun Dop Bram Muay or I’m Sixteen translates as:

“This year I’m 16… This year I’m 16.

I have no worries fa la la la,

Life is like flowers, with a nice scent fa la la la la la la la ,

This year I’m 16… This year I’m 16

I have no worries fa la la la,

What is love? Is it bitter, sour, or sweet? fa la la la la la la la.”

It is not known what fate befell Serey Sothea and the other singers of the 60s and 70s after the fall of Phnom Penh to the Khmer Rouge in 1975, but Pol Pot’s regime targeted Cambodia’s intelligentsia and did not look favourably upon artists and musicians. Rumours have flown around for the thirty years or so but the truth of the exact circumstances under which these musicians died has never been established. Serey Sothea and Sisamouth were never seen after the fall of Democratic Kampuchea in 1979.

Recent years have seen a resurgence of this music, both from those trying to resurrect the sounds of Khmer rock and those seeking to emulate it, with Dengue Fever playing a central role to bringing Khmer rock to the world’s attention. Some were able to preserve collections of cassette tapes from the purges of the Democratic Kampuchea genocide: Matt Dillon’s 2002 film City Of Ghosts featured a whole soundtrack based on 60s era Khmer music, including songs from Serey Sothea and Sisamouth and today Dengue Fever add a modern twist to an old sound.

Cambodia today is a country loaded with physical remnants of a complex and sometimes tragic history, but for those who are interested in understanding the multi-layered nature of Cambodian popular culture over the last 50 years or so the sounds of Khmer rock provide real echoes of the past.

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Tags: 60s, Chhom Nimol, Dengue Fever, Khmer, Khmer Rouge, music, popular culture, Rock n roll, Southeast Asia