ALIGNMENT

Behind Alignment is Francesco Pierfelici, an Italian DJ and producer who combines techno with the force of a rave and a feel for melody. Born and raised in Bologna, he later found the centre of his work in Berlin.

His musical beginnings lay outside the club: as a teenager, he learned clarinet and classical music, initially producing hip-hop beats for people from his hometown. Weekends at a club in Riccione opened the door to techno, where he was impressed by, among other things, Len Faki’s powerful kicks. After moving to Berlin, he joined the Voxnox label in 2014 and began his Alignment project in July 2015. Releases followed on KNTXT, Involve Records, ARTS and Etruria Beat, among others.

An early success was the “Infinity” EP on Voxnox, which sold out within three weeks. With “1992”, he combined his love of nineties techno with a modern interpretation; the title also refers to his year of birth. Charlotte de Witte played his music in sets and podcasts, and Alignment later released on her KNTXT label. He has also appeared on European festival stages, including Awakenings and Kappa FuturFestival.

His sound thrives on contrast: deep basslines and driving kicks carry distinctive melodies and reverberating synthesizers. The intensity can slip into the hypnotic, as demonstrated by the club-focused EP “Nothingness”.