Dengue Fever

When you're a contemporary American band that makes 1960s Cambodian psychedelic garage rock, the line between innovation and shtick can probably start to feel mighty fine. And so we find Dengue Fever switching things up a bit on their third album. Venus is still riddled with Scooby-Doo guitars, Chhom Nimol's delicate Khmer wail and that organ. But the trippy tapestry is expertly interwoven with biographical English material (the very literal but charming "Tiger Phone Card"), a surf rock vibe ("Oceans of Venus") and even a bit of modern-day indie rock ("Sober Driver").