Mind Against

Two brothers from Milan, a shared obsession with synthesizers, and a move to Berlin via London in 2011 produced Mind Against, one of the most distinctive acts in modern techno. Alessandro and Federico Fognini started the project that year, and by 2012 they had released their debut single "Cagliostro" on Life and Death, the label co-run by DJ Tennis, Thugfucker's Greg Oreck, and Tale Of Us' Matteo Milleri.

Three EPs on Life and Death followed in quick succession: "Atlant" (2013), "Avalon" (2014), and "Strange Days" (2015). Each release sharpened their approach, a form of techno that pulls from the psychedelic textures of 1980s film soundtracks and folds them into meticulous sound design. The brothers didn't just record for Life and Death. They became central to its operations, handling A&R and label management alongside their own production work.

That dual role carried over to Afterlife, the label and event platform founded by Tale Of Us in 2016. The Fognini brothers co-run A&R for the imprint, and their releases on Afterlife have become benchmarks for the label's sound. The "Solaris" EP with Ae:ther was the imprint's third release. "Walking Away" (2020) became one of that year's most talked-about tracks in the melodic techno world. "Changes" followed in 2021, and the single "Dreamcast" arrived in December 2022.

Beyond Afterlife, Mind Against have released on Scuba's Hotflush Recordings, contributing the "Explorer" EP and collaborating with Locked Groove on the "Elysium / Pulsar" single. They appeared on Cocoon compilations and on Recondite's Plangent imprint. Their two BBC Radio 1 Essential Mixes, recorded in September 2016 and May 2021, stand as documents of their range as selectors.

In 2022, Mind Against joined the prestigious "fabric presents" mix series with an 18-track compilation. Eleven of the tracks were exclusives, many produced by artists in the brothers' orbit, closing with "Freedom," a collaboration with Dyzen. The mix captured what makes them unusual among their peers: they operate simultaneously as producers, label architects, and DJs whose back-to-back sets benefit from the wordless shorthand only siblings share.