AJATON’s new single is heavily inspired by gameplay and visuals of modern video games.

Finland’s, AJATON, have released a new single Inverse Records.  The highly stylized and understated track, Runner, checks in at just under four and half minutes long.  Listening to the single takes the listener on a psychedelic journey through the modern state of synthwave.

Runner features an extremely simple, yet staunch melody.  Whereas the melody is simple, it allows the rest of the ambiance and textures to develop around the main motif.  There is tasty drum and bass elements, silky smooth pads, and a haunting female vocal that entice keep the track constantly evolving.

On the first listening to Runner, it sounded like a work in progress, but there was something that brought me back.  It was hard to describe, but there was something intangible in the track that beckoned me to listen to it again and again.  It could have been as simple as the track was instrumental, and there were no lyrics to distract me, or it might have been something else. Regardless, as I listened to the track over and over, the more I liked it.

The track title, “Runner”, conjures images of great sci-fi and electronic music from the previous decades.  Instantly the memories of the movies Logan’s Run, The Running Man, and even Escape From New York […it doesn’t have “run” in the title, but Snake sure had to do his fair share of running in that movie!] come to mind.  Runner would easily fit into a current remake of any of those, and even a video game.

According to the Ajaton’s Facebook page, the track was inspired heavily by video games, especially Cyberpunk 2077;

“Our new single ‘RUNNER’ is now released to celebrate the new Cyberpunk 2077 -video game. This new single is heavily inspired by the pre-released materials and visuals of the new video game. ‘RUNNER’ takes the listener in to the future where corporations and evil empires rule the galaxy.”

ALL HAIL AJATON!

Slickster: How can you describe the state of music in Finland right now?

Ajaton: There’s a lot electronic music in Finland. Most of it is mainstream but it’s mostly pop and rap-oriented. As I imagine the case in every other country.

Slickster: Is there a lot of electronic music? Do people support the music scene?

Ajaton: Something like Synthwave or Dark Synth is underground and niche stuff here.

Slickster: Your new single is composed for a video game. Can you please explain to us how to compose music for video games?

Ajaton: Actually our newest single isn’t composed for a videogame. It might seem it, but it’s more like influenced from video games like just released Cyperpunk 2077 and from it’s world. For the whole video game music composing is a whole different thing.

Slickster: The single, Runner, has a very minimalistic feeling, and relies heavily on atmosphere. Was this intentional?

Ajaton: Yeah. You could say that. It’s very bass line driven with “dreamy” synths and aggressive stabs!

Slickster: What is the secret to writing a good melody for a new song?

Ajaton: The secret is to write how you feel. Then do that multiple times and arange that to a good melody. Dark, broody and some hopeful lines connect and make something special.

Slickster: When will the game be released and can we get a free copy?

Ajaton: Heh. I wish we had a game! But when we do you get the notice!

Slickster: Thanks for sharing the new single. Is there anything else you would like to add to the interview that we didn’t get the chance to talk about?

Ajaton: Thank you for you time and you can check Ajaton’s new single on Spotify and Youtube!

LINKS:

FB: https://www.facebook.com/Ajatonmusic/
SPOTIFY: https://spoti.fi/3aiHFY2
YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/HGVdyYUyZuo

IG: https://www.instagram.com/ajatonmusic/

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/ajatonmusic