ALIGN Finds His Sound in the Space Between Opposites: Inside Contrast

Contradiction is the whole point for ALIGN. On his new EP Contrast, pretty, melodic passages sit right up against heavier, sound-design-driven drops. It's a tension he says shows up everywhere in his life, long before it ever showed up in his production: in his emotions, his thoughts, the way one feeling always seems to carry a trace of its opposite. That instinct traces back to seeing ODESZA perform in college, and it's carried him through collaborations with Big Gigantic and Louis the Child to a fall tour alongside San Holo and INZO. Ahead of the EP's release, ALIGN sat down to talk through where that tension comes from, how it plays out on tracks like "Heart Racing" and "Speak To Me", and what he hopes listeners are left with once the EP ends.

Q: For fans who are just discovering you through this EP: who is ALIGN? How would you describe your sound to someone hearing you for the first time?

A: I’m James! I’m a music producer from Chicago, IL living in LA now. I’ve been making music for a while and love experimenting with different styles. I make a lot of melodic music and have been blending that with heavier drops lately creating something that feels unique for me as a producer. I think my music has a vibey beach element to it but the heavier stuff brings a higher energy as well.

Q: What first pulled you toward electronic music, and was there a moment you knew music production was what you wanted to do?

A: I started listening to Bonobo and Skrillex from an early age. From there I discovered ODESZA and when I was in college I saw them perform at a 500 capacity room and realized how badly I want to make the music that creates that type of environment / atmosphere. Seeing my friends having a really fun time with ODESZA at the center of it rather than any of the overplayed pop/edm/rap at the time was such a cool thing. I just remember being excited that people could have really cool experiences to all types of music and that I really wanted to create my own music to curate these experiences.

Q: You've built out a run of high-profile collaborations and remixes throughout your career: Big Gigantic, Louis The Child, and now this EP's guest list. What do you look for in a collaborator?

A: Everyone I’ve remixed or collaborated with I’ve been a genuine fan of. I just look for someone who is creating something that is inspiring to me. Sometimes these collaborations / remixes are for people I’ve grown up listening to, so some of them have been huge full circle moments for me to work with someone that I’ve looked up to for years. I really think I’m looking for someone who is bringing something to the table that feels fresh, and has a sound that I feel like I can compliment by bringing my own into the mix.

Q: You’re going on tour with San Holo and INZO this fall. What's the biggest difference between how you experience a song in the studio versus once you're playing it for a crowd?

A: I really create music that has a feeling or energy that I click with. Lately, what has clicked for me has been music with heavier drops. I’ve found a way to make that work for the ALIGN sound and I’ve been loving playing out all of my new stuff. So a lot of the music I make in the studio has translated over to the live show environment.

While some music comes out with a lot of energy and is perfect for shows, other stuff has lower energy levels but still resonates with me in a personal way, so those songs just become good for listening at home. I have one more surprise headliner I’m going on a couple stops with as well!

Q: Contrast feels like the right title for this project: every track seems to hold two opposing feelings at once. Was that tension something you set out to explore from the start, or did it emerge as the songs came together?

A: The idea of Contrast has intrigued me because it’s so applicable throughout life. I feel that two things can be true at once a lot of the time. I experience really positive emotions but sometimes there are negative aspects to them. Other times when I’m experiencing an intense negative emotion, there’s a positive silver lining to the situation. I think this push and pull of opposites shows itself in my life with thoughts, feelings, emotions, and sounds. So blending styles in songs and in a body of work just really felt right. For the sonic aspect of the EP I’m combining contrasting elements: very pretty and melodic music with a heavier bass drop. I felt like the contrast between these opposing forces becoming one overall idea was something I hadn’t yet explored and have been really excited to combine at the track and EP level.

Q: That contrast also carries into the production itself: how did you approach balancing the melodic, atmospheric side of your sound with the heavier, high-energy drops across these songs?

A: A lot of my music is very melodic, I think melodies and chords are some of my favorite parts of creating music. So if I create something heavy, it then becomes easier to then make something very pretty around it and fill in the gaps. I think it makes an idea listenable for many different reasons.

Q: "Heart Racing" leans into that early future bass feeling a lot of bitbird’s fans grew up on. What does that era mean to you now, compared to when you first heard it?

A: I was deeply getting into EDM during the future bass era, so that era is a very special one for me: I still look back at that time and listen to that music lovingly, and I think a lot of it still holds up and has amazing roots. Babsy. and I have always been fans of each other's music and wanted to make something together, so the first time we got in the studio, we mostly ended up just talking about life. The next time around, we had a much clearer idea of the vibe we wanted to capture. We started Heart Racing with some repeated vocal chops, and once we added chords to them, the song basically started building itself. Something about that process gave us both that "future bass" feeling we used to get listening to the genre back in the day, and that inspiration really drove the whole session. Heart Racing felt like revisiting that era with a bit of a modern twist on it.

Q: "Speak To Me" is the EP's focus track, and it feels different in energy from the rest: Linney’s vocals carry it in a different direction. What is it about this one that makes it stand out to you compared to the rest of the EP?

A: "Speak To Me" follows the idea of Contrast as a whole. It actually started with Manila Killa and me as a really short, simple idea we made in an hour; but I loved the direction, so I gave it a melodic twist and made the drops heavier. The idea was to bring the bass and beach vibe together into one song, combining two different yet similar feelings. Linney's vocals are incredibly smooth and pretty, floating on top of the song telling a love story about escaping reality with someone, until they're met with a more intense, sound-design-heavy drop. Even in the drop there are still sprinkles of her lyrics mixed in with the bass-centered ideas, and I feel like the lyrics bring a level of depth to the track that I was really looking for. It's that combination of bass sounds in the drop against the vibey, surfy chords that set the tone: bringing two different vibes together is what makes a song feel unique to me, and it's a mixture of feelings and sounds that really clicked. It's a song I'm extremely excited to share, and one I'd re-listen to if I heard it.

Q: If you had to describe the feeling you want someone to be left with once the EP ends, what would it be?

A: I would want them to either pick a favorite song, or feel that they wanted to re-listen to the EP again! I want people to hear the feeling I was capturing, with a thought-provoking song / build up and then a heavier drop. I hope to leave people with a positive impression, but I also hope that some elements, melodies, or atmospheres, leave some small thought provoking moments for everyone too. I’ve always loved hearing something unique in someone’s music that leaves me thinking.

Q: If someone hears Contrast on a first listen and wants to go deeper into your catalogue afterward, wThere would you point them?

A: The music I’ve been releasing for 2025 and 2026 is really starting to show my direction especially with some of the more bass leaning records. I would recommend checking out the stuff from these last 2 years because I feel that music “aligns” with my visions and where I’m taking the overall ALIGN sound. My older records are much more atmospheric and melodic, but still share the same DNA as the new ideas that I have. I’ve also been making a lot of unofficial remixes on Soundcloud showing some of my bass direction!

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