There is anxiety among a portion of the population whose dreams and aspirations inevitably fall short. Sometimes because of a lack of trying, and other times due to bad luck, in almost all situations, they are left feeling defeated. The brutal, hard reality of being creatively brave and vulnerable, an even more niche group falling into this category simply will just not take no for an answer. Driven by foolishness or perhaps by fate, somewhere deep inside each knows they must go on.
With all of this in mind, the stubborn personality type finds that sometimes what they thought they once were is not focused until much later in the journey. Arguably the case with Danny Rocco, the native Long Islander has been playing music since only thirteen years old. Having a fire inside, he would go onto the band Secret Weapons; an act that signed on with Epic Records and opened for the likes of Panic! at the Disco, Fall Out Boy, and Weezer. Unfortunately dissolving because his songwriting partner Gerry Lange faced health issues, Rocco was a man without a band.
A crossroads for Rocco, he quickly went to work as a solo artist, and in 2018 self-released the debut EP Let The Vultures In.
A new artistic direction, the interesting aspect was that Rocco did not simply put it out under his name, but as Des Rocs. A persona that he has developed ever since, the music of Des Rocs has progressively become a more electrifying brand of Rock-n-Roll that would fit nicely alongside the likes of Glam Rock giants of the ‘70s, but with a unique touch. Something that captures the imagination of Rock fans exhausted by generic modern music, as Des Rocs, Rocco has toured with the Muse, The Rolling Stones, The Cult, and The Struts. Pretty darn good, word on the street is that his live performances are nothing less than exhilarating, which makes Des Rocs that much more curious to check out.
So the question is, have you heard Des Rocs yet? If the answer is yes, then good for you. If the answer is no, have no shame… but the time has come to discover what you are missing. Putting out the powerful A Real Good Person In A Real Bad Place in 2021 through 300 Entertainment, in 2023 he took matters to a completely different level with Dream Machine. Initially released on August 25, 2023, through Sumerian Records, Rocco soon embarked on the Dream Machine Tour. A run that found him performing eighty-four shows over an unprecedented sixteen countries, after wrapping up the second leg of the European dates, Des Ros came back home to New York to play at National Sawdust in Brooklyn on October 1, 2024. An intimate night, it not only was a great bookend to this chapter, but it also celebrated the re-release of Dream Machine in an expanded format.
Made available on October 11th, the new release is called Dream Machine: The Lucid Edition and features three new songs, a new version of “In the Night” (featuring Underoath), plus two live tracks. Expanding the original nine-track album to fifteen, it should not be assumed you actually are familiar with Dream Machine at all. Approaching it from this point of view, Dream Machine is an all-encompassing thrill ride where Rocco freshly presents unique song ideas.
Explaining this further, the songs of Dream Machine are certainly rooted in dirty, gritty Rock-n-Roll, but with theatrical flairs that make it far more interesting than something more straightforward. Along this journey, you can see how Rocco’s creative energies have finally come into full focus after years of hard work. Taking the highs and lows of everything, he seemingly has harnessed all of his Rock-n-Roll dreams into something quite real, and while sometimes ideas fall short, this album does not. Simplifying it, the vocals are nothing short of passionate, soulful, and immense, while the guitars blister sharp, as the bottom end hits you right in the sweet spot.
You could seek insight on where to start when listening to Dream Machine, but the honest way to approach it is to just press play and listen to everything unfold. Yes, songs like “I Am The Lightning” and the title-track strike hard, while “Never Ending Moment” is hauntingly influenced by U2, and “In The Night” is epic, but do not skip anything else along this ride. Furthermore, the new tracks, “Love and a Smoking Gun,” “Trauma Loop,” and The Way It Has To Be,” are like a shock to the senses in the most delightful way.
Overall, Dream Machine feels like Rock-n-Roll mixed with Soul, an almost Gospel tone that drives you to a better state of mind. In times when feels like our light is being smothered out, Des Rocs is a reminder that nothing can stop the human spirit. A Rock album for the ages, Cryptic Rock highly recommends picking up Dream Machine: The Lucid Edition and at last figuring out who exactly Des Rocs is, giving this album 5 out of 5 stars.
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