IN CONVERSATION WITH ILARIO ALICANTE
Interview by Samo Šajn
Ilario Alicante is a world-known DJ and music producer. He’s known for his powerful sets and deep connection with the crowd. Starting from a young age, he’s played at some of the biggest clubs and festivals around the world. His music is all about energy, emotion, and bringing people together on the dancefloor.
Photography by Haris Nukem
L/NK is about a shared moment between the DJ and the crowd. How do you know when that moment happens?
It’s when what I call “the connection of all things” takes place. When people, sound, light, energy, even the unexpected, align into something bigger. That precise moment is LINK. It’s not just a connection between DJ and crowd. It’s the alignment of every cause and condition. You don’t control it, you feel it. It’s the kind of moment that reminds you why music matters.
What makes a L/NK set different from a regular DJ set for you personally?
In a regular set, I might focus on flow, tension, or keeping the room alive. But with LINK, it’s something more conscious. It’s about creating space for alignment, for that connection of all things. I take more risks, I’m more attentive to the emotional architecture of the night. I’m not trying to control the crowd; I’m trying to dissolve into them.
The drop and the silence seem important at L/NK. Why do those moments matter so much?
It’s not really about the drop or the silence in themselves. What matters is how every element contributes to creating the connection. Sometimes the drop is the key, other times it’s the lighting, a transition, a shared look in the crowd, or even the slow layering of a groove. LINK isn’t defined by one moment. It’s born when all the parts align. That interdependence is what creates the experience. The drop might trigger it, or it might be something much more subtle. What counts is that each detail plays its role in forming the connection of all things.
How do you read the crowd and decide what to play next in a L/NK set?
It starts from the fact that I’ve always been on the dancefloor before being behind the decks. I’ve felt the tension, the craving, the magic that happens when the right track hits at the right time. One night, I was dancing at DC10, fully immersed, and I remember thinking: what would I want to hear next? What would elevate this moment? That exact thought became the foundation of my track “Vacaciones de Chille.” It was born from the dancefloor, from listening as a raver.
That experience shaped how I play today. When I’m DJing, I try to split myself in two. One part of me is the selector, but the other is still on the floor, anticipating, sensing, feeling. I try to satisfy that subtle emotional need that arises in certain moments. When the room is asking for something deeper, warmer, harder, or more open. That’s the key. To interpret that tension and release it in sound. That’s where the atmosphere is born.
Photography by Gabriele Confora
Art installation POSTHUMAN ARTEFACT 002 by art group PANTERRA
L/NK isn’t just about music, it’s also about the space and visuals. How do those elements affect your performance?
In a moment where everything in the scene was shifting more and more toward CGI and hyper-produced visuals, I made a conscious decision to go in the opposite direction. I didn’t want LINK to rely on digital effects or overwhelming screen content. I wanted to bring back presence — something tangible, something you can feel in the room.
That’s why I chose to introduce a physical structure at the centre of the experience, created by a group of artists called Panterra. They reinterpreted the slash from my logo as a symbol of union — a bridge between two forces, generating a burst of energy. Like a nova, it marks the point where tension becomes creation. That’s why there’s a circular shape with embedded screens placed within the slash.
It’s not decoration, it’s meaning. Around that structure, the lighting setup — strobes, scanners, sharp directional beams — recalls the classic tools of club culture but reimagined through a futuristic lens. All of this influences how I perform. The space isn’t just a background. It’s alive, reactive, and part of the connection. Just like the crowd.
Have you ever felt like the crowd was guiding your set? Can you tell us about that?
Absolutely. There are moments where the room speaks louder than the monitors. I’ve changed direction mid-set just from sensing a shift. Maybe the crowd wants to go deeper, or float instead of stomp. I trust those moments. When the connection is real, the set becomes a two-way current passing by the filter of my interpretation and taste
Why is it important for the DJ and the audience to feel like one at L/NK? 8. If someone has never been to LINK, how would you explain what makes it special?
Because that’s the core of LINK. It is that moment when we dissolve the separation. I don’t believe in stages that isolate the artist from the people. When we become one, ego disappears, and presence takes over. That shared rhythm, that interdependence, that’s when the magic happens
If someone has never been to L/NK, how would you explain what makes it special?
It’s not a party, it’s an alignment. It’s where every detail, every person, every sound contributes to something more. It’s about feeling, not just dancing. LINK invites you to drop the masks, to be present. If you're open, it gives you that rare sensation of everything clicking into place, even if just for a moment.
