Cyphon Recordings continue their deep dive into the rich heritage of UK and Detroit electronic sounds with their second label release, this time from Danny Was A Drag King label boss DJ Rocca.

Active since the 90s, the Italian producer is a dedicated explorer of the Italo Disco-inspired sounds native to his home. He’s been plotting his sonic journey for decades, making pit stops at labels across Europe including Rekids,Toy Tonics, Slow Motion, Rotten City Records and Roam Recordings. On top of his solo outings, collaboration has played a big role in his production journey to date. He’s worked with artists like Howie B, Jazzanova and Zed Bias, as well as joining forces on ongoing projects with fellow Italian stalwart Daniele Baldelli and Dimitri From Paris, the latter under the name Erodiscotique.

Now back on his solo pursuits for Cyphon, Rocca proves he’s still very much at the top of his game. The four cuts on ‘Code 041’ explore all shades of electro, from raw, old school machine funk to futuristic cosmic sounds. It’s electro done the Rocca way.

The title track sets the tone. An eerie bass line crawls along, providing a bed for reflective pads to glide and mysterious synth sounds and echoing vocal samples to ricochet above. ‘No Gym’ greets us next, bringing that Italo flair Rocca’s mastered so well. It’s the most vibrant track on the release, matching colourful pinging synths and tropical-tinged melodies with a signature driving acid bass line.

On the flip, ‘The Bigger Lake’ takes the EP in a different direction, on a trip through dark glistening pads, tittering percussion and sub aquatic bass before the dusty breaks and moody, jazzy keys of ‘Omega’ bring the release to a close. Mirroring Cyphon’s label ethos, Rocca showcases the best of the past and present of a timeless sound.


DJ Feedback:

Hammer / Feel My Bicep - This is sounding absolutely great! x

Laurent Garnier - Twisted funkyness… Great stuff

Pattn / Fabric Resident - These are quality productions, sounding crisp. Really like the No Gym track.

Josh Cheon / Dark Entries - loving the first track!

Cormac / Polari Records - enjoying the no gym track

Justin Cudmore / The Bunker NYC - I am liking this release! I'd love to play this.

REES / CWPT - Big lover of this one!

Ryan Clover / Homage NYC - Sound a bit too lo-fi for my tastes when it comes to electro.

Ngoni Egan / United Identities - Really solid release. Love the Omega track. The pads are lovely in it! Arrangement and journey of the track is great :) More

A1 – Detox
A2 - Tropicale 17
B1 - Tropicale 17 (Chicken Lips Malfunction)

Whiskey Pickle returns with yet another 12" of eclectic leftfield deepness, this time around from prolific Italian producer DJ Rocca.

The first cut off the record 'Detox' is reminiscent of the early 80’s electronic sound with nice mellow synths and a clever breakbeat. The next track is the title cut 'Tropicale 17' a lovely arpeggiated bell laden jam that sounds something like Kraftwerk lost in the Japanese wilderness.

Side B is dedicated to the epic twelve plus minute 'Chicken Lips Malfunction' Chicken Lips remix of 'Tropicale 17'. This is the jam that got those fowl fellas (Andy Meecham & Dean Meredith) back in the studio and boy was it worth it! More

DJ Rocca returns to Wonder Stories with a stunning EP that only the Italian legend could produce. Steeped in his style, the eclectic producer submits three original tracks dedicated to his favourite types of pastas.
Known for his collaborations with Dimitri From Paris, and Daniele Baldelli, Rocca's playful energy and original song writing shines through. On remix duty is the elusive DJ Fett Burger who combines 'Spaghetti' and 'Fusilli' into a chaotic amalgamation of stabby synths and percussive drums.
'Spaghetti' is a left-field house tune with muted bass and eerie synth melodies. 90s house stabs and lo-fi broken beats amp up the track with sultry vocal lines accenting throughout. 'Fusilli' emerses the listener in a tribal futuristic landscape of a forgotten synthetic world. Think after hours of a blade runner rave. Rocca's studio prowess really shines here, as his analogue. synthesizer and drum machine collection are brought to the forefront.
'Penne' slows things down into a slow-mo funk disco-esque tune with sharp stabby synths and a growling bassline. Rocca, ever the multi-instrumentalist, let's his flute playing shine here, culminating in a seriously vibey aesthetic.
Opting for his pseudonym 'DJ Fett Birger', DJ Fett Burger combines both 'Spaghetti' & 'Fusilli' into a frantic and chaotic amalgamation of breaks and acid.The addition of an elusive vocal sample brings a mindset of late speed-induced warehouse raves. More

The second release on Neil Diablo's El Diablo's Social Club imprint comes straight out of West Yorkshire from Leeds' very own Joe Morris. Joe has been has had releases on 3am, Midnight Social, Nang and Paper and also produced an exclusive track in the summer of 2011 for the 'We Love…' mix cd series. Joe sent Neil this EP and he was blown away and was instantly signed up for EDSC. Joe is one half of the promoting team of respected Leeds club night polaroid and is now involved in new night Clandestino who are bringing the likes of A Love From Outer Space to the murky streets of West Yorkshire. Colours is a Nu Italo crazy arpegiated, string laden, acid lazer bomb which has been exploding on dancefloors over the last few months. On the remix tip is El Diablo's favourite - Eric Duncan with his Dr Dunks Disco Detour version. This does exactly what its says on the tin. A heavier New York style disco beat plays nicely over the arps with the acid line being used to maximum effect. Also not to be missed is the little 105bpm balearic gem 'Heart Strings' on the flip which will probably be getting played on a beach near you this summer and rounds the package off very nicely. More

From the murky Manchester backstreets, the El Diablo’s Social Club main man Neil Diablo (AKA The Midnight Chopper alongside cohort Mr Masters) stalks his Balearic-Rock prey with a sharp eye for a groove and a keen sense of razor sharp riffing ! More