Francisco Mora-Catlett marks 30 years of Planet E with his first electronic album

Music

Today, Mexican-American percussionist, composer, and producer Francisco Mora-Catlett releases his first ever electronic music album ‘Electric Worlds’.

As well as marking 30 years of Carl Craig’s Planet E label, this is also the first solo release from Mora-Catlett on the imprint, which came to fruition after a return to Berklee College of Music during lockdown to study electronic music production.

The idea for this exploration into electronic sound came about whilst Mora-Catlett told Craig about the experience of African American artists pioneering electronic music as far back as the 50s, with Sun Ra’s experimentation with the first rhythm machine and electric pianos from Robert Moog.

The resulting album displays Mora-Catlett’s ability to fuse the present with the past, as the press release reaffirms, the LP is “coated in the knowledge of ancient culture that is fundamental to the way Francisco writes and understands music. It is this quest that leaves him constantly answering; who am I, what am I, what is the Universe.”

With a career that spans decades and genres, Mora-Catlett’s work has always been guided by freedom and boundless experimentation. Since the 70s he’s worked with Sun Ra Arkestra, studied at Berklee College of Music and toured with Max Roach, as well as being part of Carl Craig’s “The Innerzone Orchestra” during the 90s.

Electric Worlds is out now on Planet E.