ALIGASH (real name — Song Qiang; previously performed as DJ JOE) is a Chinese DJ and music producer working primarily in trance and uplifting trance. His professional career spans around three decades. He has worked under the name ALIGASH since 2019, when he began focusing on trance music. His releases have appeared on Future Sound of Egypt (FSOE), Pure Trance NEON, AROS Music and Amon Vision. His key works include «Spring And Autumn», «Belief», «Moon Bay At Sunset», «Indelible Memory», «Quicksand», «Starshine», «Half a Dream», «Clouds' Hometown» and «Evening Primrose». Apple Music lists Dalian, Liaoning Province, as the artist’s place of origin.
Career before ALIGASH
Before moving into trance, Song Qiang worked for many years under the name DJ JOE. Chinese music sources describe him as part of the country’s first generation of professional DJs and trace the beginning of his work with electronic dance music back to the 1990s. Publications from that period and later archives confirm that, as DJ JOE, he produced his own dance tracks and remixes for Chinese artists. A 2008 Sohu publication, in particular, directly identifies Song Qiang as DJ JOE and as one of the producers behind dance remixes.
This period differed noticeably from ALIGASH’s modern discography. DJ JOE worked with different forms of club music, including house, Eurodance and other styles popular during the 1990s and 2000s. His older DJ JOE remixes and later ALIGASH trance releases are therefore better understood as different stages of the same professional career rather than as one stylistically uniform catalog.
ALIGASH’s Beatport profile states that the new stage name appeared in 2019. From that point onward, trance became the musician’s main direction. Pure Trance also identifies ALIGASH as Song Qiang and highlights both his long-standing DJ career and his popularity among Chinese trance listeners.
Transition to trance
The first years of the ALIGASH project were defined by the development of a clearly focused musical direction — melodic uplifting trance at around 140 BPM. The interest in dance-oriented structure carried over from the DJ JOE period, but the composition style, synthesizer work and the artist’s position within the club scene changed significantly.
One of the early tracks released under the new name was «Spring And Autumn», which appeared in 2021. The track combines an electronic trance structure with the timbres of Chinese instruments, including guzheng, pipa, bamboo flute and traditional percussion. Chinese publication Electronic Music Information connected the release with ALIGASH’s intention to incorporate selected elements of Chinese musical tradition into contemporary trance.
This approach, however, did not become a defining feature of every subsequent track. Most of ALIGASH’s international catalog belongs to the instrumental trance style typical of the modern uplifting scene and does not rely on the constant use of Chinese folk instruments.
Belief
At the end of 2021, the single «Belief» was released on AROS Music. The Extended Mix runs for 6:30 and has a tempo of 140 BPM. The release belongs directly to uplifting trance and demonstrates ALIGASH’s already established approach to the genre: a long club version, gradual melodic development and a dedicated breakdown before the main climax.
Debut on Future Sound of Egypt
ALIGASH’s first release on Future Sound of Egypt was «Moon Bay At Sunset». It was released on December 2, 2022 as part of Future Sound EP Vol. 9. The release’s second track, «Scope», was produced by Canadian artist Matthew Duncan. For both musicians, this marked their debut on FSOE.
«Moon Bay At Sunset» received support on Aly & Fila’s Future Sound of Egypt radio show around the time of release. The track was featured, among other episodes, in FSOE 782 and 784.
The collaboration with FSOE proved long-running: over the following years, the label released additional original ALIGASH tracks as well as his remixes of other trance producers.
Indelible Memory
In August 2023, ALIGASH returned to FSOE with «Indelible Memory». The track appeared on Future Sound EP Vol. 14 alongside «Helios» by American producer Leroy Moreno.
The Extended Mix of «Indelible Memory» runs for 7:25 and has a tempo of 141 BPM. The track also appeared on the official Future Sound of Egypt radio show, in episode FSOE 819.
Quicksand
On January 12, 2024, the single «Quicksand» was released on Amon Vision. The Extended Mix runs for 7:25 and has a tempo of 140 BPM. Beatport classifies the original version as Trance (Main Floor).
«Quicksand» later received a dedicated package of official remixes. During 2025–2026, the track was reworked by Paul Skelton, Rodrigo Deem, Once Again and Edlan. The remixes differed considerably in style: Paul Skelton retained the trance direction, Rodrigo Deem created a progressive trance version, Once Again moved the material into breaks, while Edlan reinterpreted it as liquid drum & bass.
As a result, «Quicksand» became one of the relatively few ALIGASH tracks to receive official versions across several different electronic genres.
Starshine
In May 2024, FSOE released «Starshine». The Extended Mix runs for 7:05, has a tempo of 140 BPM and is written in F minor. The release continued the instrumental uplifting trance direction ALIGASH had developed through «Moon Bay At Sunset» and «Indelible Memory».
Half a Dream and Pure Trance NEON
On October 11, 2024, ALIGASH made his debut on Pure Trance NEON, a label within the Pure Trance family. The single was titled «Half a Dream» and carried catalog number PTN141.
In its official release description, Pure Trance identifies the artist as Song Qiang a.k.a. ALIGASH and notes his regular livestreams on the Chinese platform Douyin. The Extended Mix of «Half a Dream» runs for 7:24.
For ALIGASH’s career, the significance of this release lies not in a change of genre — «Half a Dream» remains uplifting trance — but in the appearance of his music in another specialist international trance catalog beyond FSOE.
Remixes for FSOE
In 2025, ALIGASH’s Future Sound of Egypt discography expanded with several official remixes.
The first was a remix of Carlos de Matos — «Gift of Love». The Extended Mix was released on April 14, 2025, runs for 6:58 and has a tempo of 140 BPM. The remix also appeared several times on Future Sound of Egypt Radio.
Later, ALIGASH reworked Misja Helsloot — «Back Where It All Started» by the Dutch trance producer. The remix was released on FSOE in autumn 2025 and was featured in Future Sound of Egypt 932.
In an interview from that period, ALIGASH explained that while working on «Back Where It All Started», he aimed to preserve the core musical idea of the original while changing the energy and arrangement of his own version.
Clouds' Hometown
On November 24, 2025, FSOE released the original single «Clouds' Hometown». The Extended Mix runs for 7:08, has a tempo of 140 BPM and is written in B-flat minor.
Songwriting credits in digital catalogs list Song Qiang as the track’s composer and producer. «Clouds' Hometown» was also featured several times on Future Sound of Egypt Radio.
Evening Primrose
In spring 2026, ALIGASH released «Evening Primrose» on FSOE. The Extended Mix runs for 7:24, has a tempo of 140 BPM and is written in G minor. Beatport dates the original release of the extended version to May 18, 2026.
Both before and after its official release, Aly & Fila included «Evening Primrose» in Future Sound of Egypt Radio. The track appeared, among other episodes, in FSOE 963 and FSOE 964.
Apple Music lists «Evening Primrose» as ALIGASH’s latest solo release as of mid-2026.
Musical style
ALIGASH’s modern work belongs primarily to uplifting trance and the main-floor branch of trance. Most of his extended versions on FSOE, Pure Trance NEON, AROS Music and Amon Vision are set at around 140 BPM. This applies to «Belief», «Quicksand», «Starshine», «Half a Dream», «Clouds' Hometown» and «Evening Primrose».
His tracks are generally designed for full DJ mixing: in addition to shorter versions, a significant portion of his releases appear as Extended Mixes running for around seven minutes. The arrangements typically use elements characteristic of uplifting trance, including gradual development, a distinct melodic breakdown and the return of the main rhythmic section afterward.
In a 2025 interview, ALIGASH named Logic Pro as his primary music production software. He also spoke about using hardware synthesizers and explained how his DJ experience influences his own productions: tracks are evaluated not only in the studio but also according to how they function within a DJ set.
ALIGASH and the Chinese trance scene
ALIGASH operates within the international trance scene, but his professional career began in China long before the current project emerged. Under the name DJ JOE, he was known as a DJ and remixer, while the transition to ALIGASH marked a more focused specialization in trance.
Pure Trance specifically highlights the artist’s presence on Douyin, where he livestreams for a Chinese audience. His Beatport profile likewise describes ALIGASH as a Chinese trance artist with many years of professional experience.
At the same time, the term «Chinese trance» is not an accurate genre definition for his music. With the exception of selected works such as «Spring And Autumn», most ALIGASH releases follow the international uplifting trance model and appear on the same specialist labels as music by European, American and other Asian producers.
Future Sound of Egypt in ALIGASH’s discography
FSOE occupies a prominent place in the artist’s modern discography. The label and related releases have featured:
- «Moon Bay At Sunset» — 2022;
- «Indelible Memory» — 2023;
- «Starshine» — 2024;
- Carlos de Matos — «Gift of Love» (ALIGASH Remix) — 2025;
- Misja Helsloot — «Back Where It All Started» (ALIGASH Remix) — 2025;
- «Clouds' Hometown» — 2025;
- «Evening Primrose» — 2026.
Some of these recordings also appeared in Future Sound of Egypt Radio episodes and label compilations. In 2026, ALIGASH’s name is also present in the catalog of FSOE’s seasonal compilations.
Key ALIGASH releases
- Spring And Autumn — 2021
- Belief — 2021, AROS Music
- Moon Bay At Sunset — 2022, FSOE
- Indelible Memory — 2023, FSOE
- Higanbana — AROS Music
- Quicksand — 2024, Amon Vision
- Starshine — 2024, FSOE
- Half a Dream — 2024, Pure Trance NEON
- Gift of Love (ALIGASH Remix) — 2025, FSOE
- Back Where It All Started (ALIGASH Remix) — 2025, FSOE
- Clouds' Hometown — 2025, FSOE
- Evening Primrose — 2026, FSOE
ALIGASH does not have a confirmed core discography of full-length solo albums. His modern catalog is built primarily around singles, extended versions, remixes and collaborative label EPs. Future Sound EP Vol. 9, Vol. 14 and Vol. 16, for example, are multi-artist FSOE releases featuring music by several producers rather than solo ALIGASH albums.
ALIGASH today
As of 2026, ALIGASH continues to release trance music and work as a DJ. His sequence of releases on FSOE, Pure Trance NEON and other specialist labels shows that the project remains focused primarily on the club trance scene rather than the pop-EDM format.
His professional history, however, extends far beyond the discography released under the ALIGASH name. Song Qiang began working as DJ JOE before trance became his main specialization, and since 2019 he has consolidated his newer recordings under a separate stage identity. This period — from the first ALIGASH releases through «Evening Primrose» — represents the most thoroughly documented international portion of his discography.
