Rock Creek Kings: Musical Cure for Pandemic Quarantine
By • April 22, 2020 0 1991
Rock Creek Kings, which calls itself a “Roots Rock” band, has taken over a corner of the east side of Georgetown, where its founder Evan Moses lives.
Members of the band who can make the weekly 6 p.m. Sunday gig serenade its socially distancing audience with its indie rock sound, combined with sweet folk harmonies and a pop sensibility.
“I started doing the shows partly because I just missed playing shows,” says Moses. “Yet it’s mostly because I wanted to give the neighborhood something to look forward to — having seen all of the viral videos of music being played in other parts of the world on rooftops and balconies.”
“The impact the shows have had on the neighborhood has really blown me away, Moses continues. “I’ve had a few residents approach me after the shows —within a safe distance, of course — in tears thanking me for the music. I have gotten many emails from local residents thanking me. I’m a renter, and to be honest before the pandemic I barely knew any of my neighbors despite having lived here for five years. So, a small silver lining to the pandemic is that I’ve really connected with my neighbors, most of whom I did not know before.”
Rock Creek Kings formed three years ago and plays mostly in D.C. and in New York City. The band has played the 930 Club, DC9 and Songbyrd. One of its regular shows has been at Sauf Haus Bier Hall & Garten on 18th Street near Dupont Circle. Its members include Evan Moses, founder, guitar, vocals; Jonah Belser, drums, vocals; Evan Saint John, bass; Christopher Lawrence, sax, backup vocals; Jacob Grafenstein, keys, guitar, vocals.
The group has a single, “Dusk Fire Lullaby,” on Apple Music and Spotify and will issue a new one, “Never See You Again” on May 9.
