Make Synthwave music
Synthwave is a retro-futuristic style inspired by 80s film and game scores: lush analog-style synths, gated drums and arpeggiated basslines, usually around 90 to 120 BPM. Neon nostalgia is the whole aesthetic.
Tempo: 90–120 BPM · Emotional minor and bright major
What defines synthwave?
Synthwave is a love letter to the 80s. Lush, analog-style synths carry the leads and pads, the drums hit with punchy gated reverb, and arpeggiated basslines drive the groove. The whole aesthetic is retro-futuristic: neon, chrome, and the glow of an old film or game score.
The nostalgia is the point. Synthwave leans into its influences without irony, building cinematic, driving tracks that feel like the soundtrack to a movie that never existed.
Signature elements of Synthwave
- ·Lush, analog-style synth leads and pads
- ·Punchy gated-reverb drums
- ·Arpeggiated synth basslines
- ·A retro-futuristic, 80s mood
- ·Cinematic, driving melodies
How Songen makes Synthwave
Songen generates a synthwave loop with the synth lead, pads, arp bass and drums as editable MIDI. Start there, then shape the arp, swap the lead, or punch up the drums.
Synthwave FAQ
- What BPM is synthwave?
- Synthwave usually runs around 90 to 120 BPM, a steady, driving pace that suits its cinematic, retro feel.
- What makes a song synthwave?
- Lush analog-style synths, punchy gated drums and arpeggiated basslines, all dripping with 80s nostalgia. It sounds like a retro-futuristic film score.
- What key is synthwave in?
- Synthwave moves between emotional minor and bright major keys, using the harmony to evoke that nostalgic, neon-lit mood.