The CT founder serves three psychedelically-charged tracks on his latest EP

We follow-up on last year’s 'Messages Volume One' with Rocco Universal’s ‘Planetarium EP’.

Fresh from his recent ‘Somewhere Else’ appearance on Soul Clap Records, DJ, producer and journalist Patrizio Cavaliere once again adopts his Rocco Universal production moniker, journeying into astral realms to serve a set of floor-focused jams. His eclectic DJ sets regularly veer into unexpected territory, and these diverse influences delicately infuse the varied and gently off-kilter productions presented here.

The EP kicks off with the title track ‘Planetarium’ with Rocco Universal embracing his Italo roots to channel Mediterranean heat into a heartfelt outpouring of hallucinogenic space disco. Thick Moog bass powers the cut over a tight disco rhythm as analogue chords and lead motifs intertwine ,before Detroit firebrand Scott Hess enlivens the cut with his funk-flecked rhythm guitar line. Cosmically rooted and designed to move dancers, this is club-focused music with a contemplative core.

Next, the mesmerising synth threads of ‘Assuage’ arrive as an opioid-fuelled slalom into deep house territory, with Rocco serving a mesmerising take on four/four profundity with a discreetly hallucinatory flourish. Flanging bass relentlessly rolls over crunching drums and loosely-woven synth patterns, with ethereal pads caressing altered vocal stabs as the tripped-out arrangement mischievously diverges. Forged in the psychic depths and steeped in cosmic intention, this hypnotic groove is built for backroom meditations.

Finally, ‘Sleepwalking In Silom’ won over an esteemed selection of DJs and collectors when it appeared on ‘Messages Volume 1’, rendering it a fitting closing moment to the collection. Deep, low-slung and brimming with atmosphere, the altered state groove chugs through waves of tripped-out effects and funk-informed melodies, conjuring the mysterious electricity of the Bangkok neighbourhood after which it takes its name.

We’ve been blown away by the taste-maker support on this one, with props and plays arriving from artists including Daniele Baldelli, Glenn Underground, Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy, Fred Everything, DJ Aakmale, Eric Duncan, Bill Brewster, Charles Levine (Soul Clap), Kraak & Smaak, DJ Rocca, Justin Robertson, Sean Johnston, Craig Smith, Rayko, Pete Herbert, Pontchartrain, Franck Roger and many more.

Rocco Universal ‘Planetarium EP’ will be available in all digital stores by August 5. You can grab it here or via the Bandcamp players above.