Ellen Allien pres. We Are Not Alone Pt. 9

Continuing to expand on their sonic world, BPitch Berlin present the ninth iteration of WE ARE NOT ALONE, a 12-track compilation bridging diverse forms and frameworks held together by a genuine love for the underground.

A testament to the breadth of style and genre that keeps BPitch alight, each WE ARE NOT ALONE compilation offers an insight into varying subcultures, and connects the dots between artists across the globe with a shared vision. From acid to industrial, EBM to trance, genre denominations fizzle and make way for a feeling, carving a space for each artist to document their own interpretation of an energy that has sustained the label and event series since its inception.

Kicking things off is UFO Inc. regular DJ Europarking, whose ‘Faze Swapp’ walks the line between playful and unnerving. Drawing on the late ‘90s hard-trance energy, he hones in on his bouncy, immersive production style, setting the tone for what’s to come. Diving into the deep end, BEC lays down a hard, bass-heavy swirl of malfunctioning lasers and tweaky vocals on ‘Tibetan Monks’. Stepping further into the dramatic art, Aida Arko readies some genre-bending, innovative storytelling on ‘May Be Life Maybe Death’.

Berlin-based Sarah Sommers steps up with an all hardware journey of tension-building synths, deep bass and hypnotic percussion. Not letting her foot off the gas, Gabby Diaz follows up with a swarm of brutal kicks and wailing distortions on ‘Bloody Dance’. Leaning further into the groove, ‘A Tear In The Sofa’ by Annē offers a paired-back dose of darkened minimalism.

Detroit-born, Berlin-based maestro DJ T-1000 slides in with expertly layered rhythms and shuffling percussion on ‘Unfeminine Woman’. Also showing some love to the Detroit sound, Byron Alvarado’s offering leans on soulful, lightly-swung techno with melodic inflections and flickers of euphoria. Next up, Ukrainian Omon Breaker lines up an emotive cut of synthwave-influenced trance energy driven by Garden Krist’s glistening vocals.

Kicking off the home run, X-Alox plunges into chaotic acoustics and fast-paced, maximal percussion on ‘Sexy Sexy’. Rebecca Delle Piane’s ‘Ammore’ leads with a powerful kick snare combo, tying the threads between hypnotic and minimal in equal measure. Rounding things off, the inimitable Dr. Rubinstein teams up with Blind Observatory for ‘Express Lane’, a smooth hit of groovy acid landing softly on cloud nine.

Playful as ever, whilst never losing sight of techno’s functional core, WE ARE NOT ALONE pt. 9 is an attempt at documenting a feeling, and a crucial snapshot into some of electronic music’s most exciting voices.