Venus on Earth, the third full-length album from LA-based band Dengue Fever, combines retro-kitsch and classic-rock revivalism. The early strains of opening track “Seeing Hands” call to mind those of “The End” by the Doors, but once the vocals, sung in Khmer (as they are on most of the remaining tracks), begin, the song becomes surreal, stirring an alien quality into Dengue Fever’s nagging familiarity. Rooted in Cambodian pop and psychedelic surf guitar, Venus on Earth seasons reverb-drenched rock with jazz, disco, and a dash of lounge. It threatens to devolve into self-consciousness, but sidesteps it; the psychedelia doesn’t feel forced, even when the ‘60s- and ‘70s-style production is a little too weird to qualify as a tribute to its inspirations.
There’s a tension in listening to something foreign while feeling certain you’ve heard it
before. The band’s disparate mixture especially works as an aural backdrop, and Dengue Fever should be credited for making something so hard to pinpoint out of such well-worn components.
-Lyam White
Dengue Fever: www.denguefevermusic.com
M80 Records: www.M80music.com