During a recent roadtrip along the Pacific Coast Highway that concluded in San Francisco, MC's editor found himself at a glorious venue called the Rickshaw Stop. With velvet drapes decorating every wall, friendly staff at the door and the bar, and a killer sound, this place has far more charm than the average side street dive. It proved to be the perfect place for this writer's first SF gig.
Nevada rockers Velvet Chains have a polished yet sleazy sound that falls somewhere between '90s-era Guns N' Roses, and the '00s alt-metal of Godsmack and their ilk. There's fun to be had with songs such as "I Am the Ocean" and their cover of Elvis' "Suspicious Minds." Meanwhile, Canadian electro-rockers ROMES were superb. Blending genres without sounding like they're shoehorning them together, songs like "Chillthefuckout" got SF bouncing. Dark, moody and overflowing with attitude, ROMES also have the tunes to back it up.
That said, nobody was upstaging Des Rocs. The New Yorker born Danny Rocco has been performing solo as Des Rocs since 2018, when his group Secret Weapons called it quits due to bandmate Gerry Lange's unfortunate health issues. He released the Let the Vultures In EP that year. There are now two full length Des Rocs albums out there--2021's A Real Good Person in a Real Bad Place and 2023's Dream Machine. With two touring musicians rounding out the band, the trio played songs from all those records at the Rickshaw.
It was less about the setlist though, and more and this artist's flamboyant, compelling stage persona. The man never stops moving, pulling all manner of poses and molding his face into a thousand different expressions. Somehow, Des Rocs is both cartoonish and utterly authentic with his delivery. That's a tough line to balance on. He's at once Freddie Mercury, Elvis Presley, Joey Ramone, and the Fonz. Nothing wrong with that.
He's also a great guitarist, he knows how to select bandmates, and he can pen a tune. The songs are undeniably brilliant; dynamic, touching and anthemic. Pick of the bunch was "MMC" from the first album, though "I Am the Lightning" ran it close.
Ultimately, this was a great show from start to finish, including the two openers. Des Rocs told a story from the stage about the first show he booked in SF, a gig he had to pull because only one ticket was sold. On a wet Wednesday at the Rickshaw, with a room full of people singing his lyrics, he had every right to feel vindicated.
