Recommended tracks: “When the Love is Gone,” “War,” “The Way”
Artists you may like: Dead Poets Society, Barns Courtney, HIMALAYAS
From track one, “To Hell and Back” is a certifiable foot-stomping, hair-tossing, bone-rattling banger. Rock music has always thrived on excess. Bigger, more, louder, grander. It is a genre created by screaming a message rather than speaking it. Very few artists nowadays embrace that ideology as unapologetically as Des Rocs, and with his newest album, To Hell and Back, he delivers his most ambitious statement yet.
From “When the Love Is Gone,” the album is introduced with a bang, refusing to play small. Every drum fill, every soaring vocal and guitar riff is like a live wire shot of energy, with the right kind of energy to fill venues and not just playlists. One of the most striking characteristics of Rocs’ album is the lean into the traditional theatrics of classic rock, drawing on glam and blues, all blending into a nostalgic mix that Rocs turns into something distinctly his own.
The album also flourishes in its pacing. It knows when to pull back from the explosive moments. “Fall Together” is one of the most emotional centerpieces, pairing sweeping strings with a beautifully vulnerable vocal performance. “Sing Me Back to Sleep” follows a quieter emotional weight that lingers before the album launches back into the full-force rock show.
Throughout the album, Des Rocs shows his influences proudly. He echoes Queen, Muse, Led Zeppelin and Jack White in different forms. But instead of Rocs’ music feeling like a cover or a copy, they serve as ingredients to a larger masterpiece, one centered on bringing rock music and its themes of perseverance of the 70s and 80s to the new generation.
The closing track, “The Way,” is a beautiful finale, bringing together the themes of self-discovery and perseverance, ending the journey on a note of optimism. With To Hell and Back, Rocs doubles down on everything that had made him one of modern rock’s most compelling voices. It’s theatrical without feeling too dramatic, and nostalgic without feeling dated. In an era where pop and rap reign supreme, Rocs aims for the stars, and more often than not, he connects.
Keep up with Des Rocs: Instagram // Spotify // YouTube // TikTok
