Yes, technical prowess is all well and good. But rock’n’roll was built largely on larger-than-life characters who desperately, thirstily wanted to be stars, for the world to fall into an adoring faint at their Cuban-heeled feet, for the spotlight to shine on them and only them for ever. From Little Richard’s flirtatious self-aggrandisement to David Bowie’s constant reinvention, Freddie Mercury’s crowd-pleasing theatrical flair to Ozzy Osbourne’s Prince Of Darkness panto, the show-offs have always risen to the top.
Enter Des Rocs, aka Danny Rocco from New York City. The cover artwork of this, his third album, finds him dressed just like Vegas-era Elvis, all leather jacket, leather trousers and greasy quiff. Musically, To Hell And Back amps up the camp, based on sturdy garage rock foundations but if said garage was repurposed as a glitter-encrusted drag cave.
