Search - Dengue Fever :: Escape From Dragon House

Booty-shakingKhmerloungepopyoucanchantto

Mr. Richard K. Weems | Fair Lawn, NJ USA | 11/22/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"All right, I'm a NUT for Asian music (this CD arrived in the same package as Kronos Quartet's rendition of classic Bollywood), but as I listened I couldn't help but twist a little in the kitchen. To call this fusion is to sell it short--this is music, with no style labels to dissect it and let the musicaologists pigeonhole. I wanted to throat in a little kargyraa underneath it all, because this stuff lends itself to everything under the sun (and under rocks). This disc is going to sit in my player a long time."

Dance Dance Revolution

Mike Stanbridge | Quincy, IL | 11/10/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Truthfully, I didn't know Cambodia had Pop music until I heard "Escape From Dragon House," the fantastic sophmore album of Dengue Fever. That took a little research and the discovery of their first album, which is retro-dance covers of 60's Cambodian pop that I still know little about but, am enjoying immensely. I am a little wiser and much happier.



I am not trying to give the false impression that Dengue Fever is a purely "International" band. The group consists of five Americans, with an obvious knowledge of the last forty years of Pop Music and one incredible Cambodian lead vocalist, who before emmigrating was the toast of her country. This is not "International" Music. It is Universal.



With the exception of "Tip My Canoe," this album is cover free and all original music. They maintain their penchant for grooving dance tunes and add a little thrill and smash. From the beginning of the album with "We Were Gonna," you can feel the influence of Funk and Punk that meshes beautifully.



I suggest you download "Sni Bong" from this page, get addicted and order both Escape and the Self Titied first album for your permanent spin"

Angelic Whispers From the Land that God Forgot

jermainekeithbutler | 11/09/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Now, in order to understand my obsession with Dengue Fever, I have to tell the story of how I first came across them. Being only a senior in high school with wayyy too much homework to do, my schedule is always weird, and I was awake one night, while listening to a local college radio station. All of a sudden, a wonderful wonderful song began to play. As i listened to it more and more, an overwhelming sense of joy overcame me. I immediately found the closest cassete next to me, and taped the rest of the song over some old Sade singles. Anyways, since it was 2 in the morning when this came on, I had no way of calling the radio station as I usually do and seeing who it was. For a year, I'd listen to the song several times throughout the day, and just dance, and feel the lovely Asian ness of it. One fateful afternoon, after arriving from school, I turned on the radio station, and the song began to play, and I jumped with joy and immediately called the radio station whose number I now have memorized. They told me something like yeah, dude, this is "Bengay Fever with Hold my Hits" so for hours, I searched the internet for this, and eventually came across, Dengue Fever's "Hold My Hips" (a wonderful title for a mesmerizing song I may add). Now, I then proceeded to go and find any trace of the band that I could, and came across their website. The next day, I called in our local record shop and had them order me a copy of the Self titled cd, which I've showed to thousands of friends who equally love it as much as I do. Well, it's been a while since I had the magic of listening to a full Dengue Fever cd, and then the incredible "Escape From Dragon House" is released.



Now, I must say that this cd is so incredible, that I had to start a new paragraph. After I heard the single, "Sni Bong", I knew that they weren't just some Cambodian cover band with a niche for renewing old songs. I can honestly say that this is one of the few cd's that I can listen to all the way through, and just be utterly happy. "Tip My Canoe", "Sleepwalking Through The Mekong", and "Saran Wrap" particularly stand out to me though. Even for us common Americans who can't speak a word of Khmer, "Tip My Canoe" is an incredibly fun song to sing along to. Myself being a huge fan of South Asia, have always appreciated everything that the Mekong has had to offer, and I think that no other song in the world can better captivate the feeling of flowing down one of the heavily green filled portions of the Mekong in the middle of a warm night than "Sleepwalking Through The Mekong". "Saran Wrap" shows off the darker, edgier sound of Dengue Fever and solidifies that they aren't just some poppy band with a pretty lead singer and seriously sweet Farfisa lines. All in all, this cd is a cd for the masses, and if you're looking for something to just broaden your musical spectrum, then I must say that this is the absolute best place to start. Dengue Fever does what I've yet to see any band do to this day, accurately present the beauty of Cambodian music and richness of the cultures. So to those who are about to listen to Dengue Fever, I salute you."