AHO, the brainchild of Helsinki producer Matti Ahopelto is a talented composer and producer who makes a unique blend of Classical and Electronica. Naming the likes of Four Tet and Caribou among his fanbase and having landed huge syncs across advertising and film music including Calvin Klein and Netflix, AHO’s blend of ambient electronic textures with vivid classical instrumentation has seen him make a name for himself as one of the most exciting new artists in the Chilled Electronic-come-Contemporary Classical sphere.
Creating beautiful and at times experimental soundscapes across his new album ‘Odyssey’, AHO showcases some of his most stunning cinematic and expansive work to date. Combining electronic beauty with open-minded contemporary classical music akin to the likes of Ólafur Arnolds and Jon Hopkins, the new album is a perfect representation of the desire for adventure that AHO pursued while making the album – it’s an odyssey: a journey to where unexpected things happen. Featuring guest artists Karina and Spencer Krug, known from the band Wolf Parade, the album is a shamelessly beautiful and emotional collection of tracks.
The lead single ‘See Swallows Plays’ highlights AHO’s unique approach to writing, blending pulsing cinematic synths layered with strings, brass, flutes and subtle guitar and piano lines to create a swelling, melancholic and overwhelmingly beautiful work full of innovative ideas.
Speaking about how ‘See Swallows Plays’, AHO explains: “It was kinda a cliché moment where it started since I was hanging out at my balcony and saw swallows play in the cold but sunny morning. A very spring-y moment. Went to the studio and while noodling with my synths was reminded about that melancholic playfulness of those swallows.
Started to build the track on a chord progression I figured out with the synths, then wrote some intertwining melodies for the flute and guitar and then worked on an orchestration for it. After I’d written all of that I invited musicians to play the flutes and guitars and brass. We had a fun night at the studio, had some wine and recorded parts. It’s all very freeform and creative when I invite people to the studio, everyone has a say in how things could work and we build from that together.”
