Born and raised in Cyprus, Alexandre Pavlou moved to Bristol in 2007 and began producing drum and bass in 2013 under the name Phaction. His early releases came through Fokuz Recordings, followed by music on C.I.A. and Metalheadz in 2017 and 2019. A 2015 single, Someone, came out on Liquicity Records. Pavlou has described his influences as broad, with his drum and bass moving between soulful and liquid styles, heavier and darker material, and a tech-leaning approach. He has spent many years in Bristol, where he is based.
A remix of Total Science Stratos brought Phaction into a closer relationship with C.I.A.; he later released an EP for the label that included the track Should Have Known. His Hard Truth EP was among his Metalheadz releases, followed by the 2020 Metalheadz EP Ubiquitous, released through its Metalheadz Platinum strand. Pavlou said that Aviatrix, featuring Riya, was used in an Adidas advertisement. The track is one of his collaborations with Riya, alongside the Spearhead Records single The Fall.
His collaborations also include Hugh Hardie: they made the track Obsession and worked together on the 2022 Hospital Records single Got U Wrong, which also features Javeon. Phaction teamed up with Charli Brix for the 2020 Spearhead Records EP Chemistry. With GLXY, he worked on The Remixes Pt 1; with Codex and Locksmith, he contributed to Myriad Recordings’ The Remixes Pt 1 - Remixes. Other releases include the Fokuz Recordings EP Revelation Sequence, made with Stormae and Centrik, and the 2022 Myriad Recordings single Souls Held Close / Consequences.
In 2021, Phaction released the Soul Trader Records single Revelation/What U Need. His 2022 releases also included the EP Inhale Exhale, while 2023 brought the Rolled Up Records single Roll With Me and the Fokuz Recordings single Life Indoors. His releases have also appeared on Spearhead and Shogun Audio. The more recent run followed a path that began with his move to Bristol and his first drum and bass productions in 2013.