Former co-founder of the HEX Techno Movement, Lorenzo Raganzini, is releasing a solo album for anti-conformists. Rosie Riot spoke to him about what inspired this deeply personal and genre-pushing album.
I’m temporarily stationed in Friedrichshain – the vibrant, alternative enclave of East Berlin – and it’s the perfect backdrop for my meeting with Italian DJ and techno producer Lorenzo Raganzini.
The gritty, post-industrial district has become a playground for techno fanatics and punky DIY expressionism. Awash with record shops, thrift stores, and underground clubs (most notably world-renowned techno mecca Berghain), the area pulsates with creativity. So it makes sense that, as a city, Berlin has been the inspiration for one of Lorenzo’s recent singles, Berlin Ecstasy, taken from the upcoming album Techno Rebels.
But the German capital is inspiration for just one facet of the album’s imprints. As Lorenzo’s star continues to rise and touring destinations expand, it’s not surprising his recent singles reflect some of these international memories. Singles Amore (I Love You) and Tbilisi have also been unveiled in early 2026. All tracks channel Lorenzo’s hard power, but with enough nuance and detail to characterise each audio story.
Details about Techno Rebels (an album Lorenzo describes as ‘my life in sounds’) first emerged last December with pre-release lead single We Are Rebels, an anthemic, guitar-laden bite of signature techno-metal, peppered with defiant vocals. With advance single Barcelona recently out, we settle down to discuss the album, as well as other international highlights.
“There are some places where I have big communities: Georgia, Poland, Spain, France… Germany, of course,” he says. “The German ravers’ vibe in clubs is really cool. Also, in Colombia, I have a good community. I play in Australia… in Taiwan. But I like to play in less-seen countries, let’s say.
“In some parts of Asia, it’s not so common to play there when it’s very far away; the logistics can be complicated, and they may have heard fewer artists live. But because of that, they can be more open to what you propose to them, and they go full power. I really like it… I feel like this is the case in China. There are no drugs, and people, as far as I know, don’t drink as much. So it was a very pure experience – very different.”
Lorenzo lights up as he recalls a memory.
“There was this cage, and some of the crowd were hanging on it, and they were screaming… just from a high off the vibes. It was really cool.”
It’s these ardent followers of his techno-metal power that create the life force of Techno Rebels, as well as Lorenzo’s refusal to be musically boxed in.
“I feel I don’t fit 100% into any category, any genre. But I fit a little bit into all of them. I can relate to techno, but at some point I created ‘techno-metal’. People say, OK, you play techno-metal, and I was very proud to have launched this and to propel this genre to more people. But at one point I felt that this was a limitation, because what I do is not only techno-metal; I do techno with a lot of different influences.
“I understand that every genre has its limitations. People can decide if it’s industrial techno, hard techno… whatever they want to call it. I think labelling is limiting, and we should just be free to express ourselves. Some songs tend to be more metal, some more industrial… others more groovy. But all of them have me, my style, and my soul in them – and I think that’s the important thing.”
We then focus on Tbilisi, Georgia’s capital and the title of one of his recent singles.Tbilisi is a blistering percussive stampede, peppered with industrial drum breaks and bongo flourishes. The track is already gathering strong traction on Spotify alone, storming towards becoming one of his most popular recent tracks.
So what was it about the city, and the experience of playing there, that inspired the track – as well as the album’s title?
“I use my own story because it’s the only one I can tell. Sharing my insecurities, vulnerabilities, uncertainty… strength also. I resonate with certain people, and these people I define as ‘rebels’, because we connect through the fact that we don’t fit in 100% anywhere, and sometimes we feel lost. But we need to find our own strength to keep going, with our own vision. So that’s the message of the album.
“Tbilisi plays a very important role because it’s one of the first cities where I played in front of a huge crowd. It’s where I connected on a larger scale with people, and I felt the energy of all these people at the same time. This woke up something even stronger in me and gave me a lot of energy and power to say – ‘OK, you are on the right path. These people like what you do. You are not alone in this, and there are more rebels out there. Let’s go’. One hundred percent.”
We pause to reflect on the journey that led to this point. Techno Rebels is an independent release—another attribute of the album that screams defiance and autonomy. I ask how important this is to Lorenzo.
“The more I age, the more I feel the need to be independent. If I make errors, it will be because of me, and I will learn from them. If I have achievements, it will also be because of me, and I will learn from them.
“I created my own label where I don’t ask other artists – I publish only my music. It’s a hard process because it’s a new channel and it doesn’t have a following by itself. It would be easier to publish on another famous label, but I don’t care, because like this I can decide whenever I want to publish the music… and what kind of music. Nobody can put a filter on my art.”
On that note, we segue onto the topic of the HEX Techno Movement and its successful club nights, which pioneered the techno-metal sound. Burgeoning in Barcelona alongside fellow Italian techno artist Paolo Ferrara, the movement has been a massive part of Lorenzo’s legacy up until recent times. The pair went their separate ways last year after over a decade of HEX. He expands on the topic of independence and autonomy:
“All my journey was shared with another person and with the brand that we created together. So every decision was taken by two people, and sometimes I wanted to do something and I could not do it.”
It’s clear Lorenzo is excited about now having total free rein over his creative decisions, including creating visuals for his album, which he wants to use to compound its storytelling. Freedom of expression and authenticity are crucially important to him, and a fundamental part of Techno Rebels. With the album being, in his own words, “a project driven by the belief that conforming is an act of creative suicide”, it’s clear he is now doing things by his own rules, with maximum sovereignty and integrity.
With the passion of his words lingering, we move onto some lighter details, including the black T-shirt Lorenzo wears, emblazoned with three white ‘strikes’. Lorenzo explains a deeper, more subliminal meaning behind his attire, which is echoed as a tattoo on his knuckles.
“Fun fact about the album… it’s about this.” He looks down at his t-shirt. “It’s 111, and I have it tattooed on my fingers as well. On the album there are 11 songs, and the last one is made at 111 BPM. For many years I’ve seen the number everywhere. I use it as a signal to help me understand if I’m going in the right direction or not. I like to embed these small things into the storyline of my album.”
Given that 111 is described as a number for ‘lightworkers’, it makes sense – there’s a good energy around Lorenzo. His spiritual beliefs and intentions seem pure, perhaps a stark contrast to the dark and gnarly power behind his sound and aesthetic, complete with the warpaint he wears onstage. But this is exactly why his message is so fitting – he won’t be defined easily.
@lorenzoraganzini MOMENTS SHARED FOREVER 🖤 @EXIT Festival #tekno #technometal #festival #exitfestival #electronicmusic #fyp #rave #lorenzoraganzini #viral ♬ original sound – Lorenzo Raganzini
It’s clear Lorenzo is in alignment. There is a touch of magic to his success. He even got to share a stage with The Prodigy, performing after them at the last EXIT Festival in Serbia. The electronic titans – hugely influential in the big beat and breaks facets of Lorenzo’s sound, as well as pioneers of metal-hard dance fusion – were a lifetime highlight for him.
“I had the luck to play after The Prodigy at EXIT Festival in Serbia. My backstage was next door to theirs. So it was The Prodigy and Lorenzo Raganzini… I took a picture because it was one of my life dreams to meet them. I would never have thought about playing with them. I spoke with them, and Liam Howlett – he’s a genius. He liked one of my bracelets and said, ‘Wow man, I really like this.’ And I told him, ‘You know what, I’ll give it to you.’ I put the bracelet on him. I said, ‘You gave me so much with your music, so this is the minimum I can do.’ And he hugged me.
“This was on stage before they started playing, and I was like, ‘Oh my God, yes!’ I really felt like a kid… my heroes. And I played to 25,000 people at sunrise at the last EXIT Festival ever – it was one of the best moments of my life.”
With that in mind, this new era certainly looks bright for Lorenzo Raganzini.
Words by Rosie Riot. Techno Rebels is released on April 10th. Keep up to date with Lorenzo Raganzini’s news and tour dates here.
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