Rom Say Sok is the first video from Dengue Fever’s fifth album, “The Deepest Lake” that just dropped today. It is available in CD format, downloads or colored vinyl. Buy it here. The record release show will be held at the Echoplex Thursday, February 5th. Check out their Facebook page for more info.
This indefinable band has been described as “Southeast Asian pop,” “Surf music,” “Psychedelic,” “Garage Rock” and “Khmer folk music.” It is perhaps best described by NPR as a throwback to the 60s and 70s psychedelic rock that flourished in Cambodia prior to the reign of the Khmer Rouge. Although the tunes are catchy and familiar American-style pop, there are strong influences from Cambodian music. Zac Holtzman (guitar/vocals) describes the “falsetto thing that’s called a ghost voice, where they crack into higher registers.” Personally, ghost voice reminds me of Bollywood’s vocal stylings. Like any great band, they mix the familiar and the innovative to create some truly original and memorable music.
I saw them play a great set at the one SXSW I ever got to go to (2006?). While an LA band that shall remain nameless made a racist joke nearby…