In the wake of Monstercat artist Julian ‘Slushii’ Scanlan getting a great Hades skin in Hi-Rez Studios’ SMITE, we caught up with the budding electronic artist to discuss all things gaming.

When it comes to video games, we all love cool looking skin. When it comes to SMITE, there are tons of amazing skins to choose from, but the Monstercat Battle Pass has really taken cosmetics to a whole new level.

One of the featured artists is electronic musician Slushii, whose new single Valhalla was the piece of resistance of the promotional campaign.

In order to get a glimpse of the method behind the neon-colored madness, Dexerto caught up with the star to discuss the game, SMITE and the anti-harassment message behind it Valhalla Musical clip.

From Tetris to SMITE

From the start, Slushii’s collaboration with Hi-Rez’s iconic MOBA had fans on the edge of their seats, but it turns out that even the man himself was thrilled to be a part of the history of the video game.

“I’ve been playing for as long as I can remember,” he told Dexerto. “Gaming culture is as important in my life as music. Exploring worlds, being creative, there are so many intersections.

“I love Tetris and Apex Legends. I’ve played a lot of Switch games lately, which I take with me everywhere. It’s perfect for long plane trips on tour.

This interest in the game made SMITE the perfect opportunity for him. “When discussing the opportunity with Monstercat, I knew I had the perfect song for SMITE – Valhalla. I had already titled it before working with them, so it’s almost like the universe is sending a sign to work with them.

And boy, are we thankful for those subliminal messages or else we wouldn’t have this absolutely insane Hades skin in the game.

Coming from the fires of hell, Slushii’s Hades skin is here to start the party.

Slushii Hades: a SMITE skin to knock them out

While many would choose Zeus or Odin as their go-to character, Slushii clearly prefers living a life on the limit. Hades being his god of choice, the neo-futuristic design of the Slushii Hades skin is a joy to cyberpunk style fans the world over.

“I had to have the most epic character of course! He exclaims, noting that “I was even able to work with their developers to ‘fool’ the character of Hades and really make it look like I was in the game.”

“I wanted to seamlessly combine the tough elements of the SMITE gods with the look and feel of my Slushii brand. Something hardcore SMITE gamers would enjoy in the game, but that was still distinctly me.

This electronically inspired skin just screams Slushii. With its bright colors and underground vibe, it’s pretty clear the developers killed the game with this one!

But what about Valhalla?

With hymn sounds and a rhythm so monstrous it would crack the King of Hell himself, Valhalla exudes power and triumph. Along with this awe-inspiring, however, the clip (as seen above) has a clear message against bullying.

“I myself am quite ‘different’ and have been the victim of bullying and negative attitudes all my life,” he admits. “The game and the community around the game has always been a positive and encouraging outlet for me, so it was amazing to be able to create something meaningful like this, and I hope it resonates with others who come together. feel “different”. “

With previous experience showing his musical prowess in titles like Fortnite and Rocket League, much of Slushii’s success can be traced back to the gaming community he’s been so involved with. As the world continues to be tainted with restrictions, the 24-year-old sees virtual music experiences as the way to go.

“I think we’ve only scratched the surface of music integrations into games,” he says. “AR, NFTs, and meta-verses are where things are going to get really interesting. Once the music industry figured out how to take full advantage of NFT audio, things could get crazy. “

For our favorite Monstercat artist, the sky is not the limit.

From the picturesque views of Fortnite to the battlefield of the gods, Slushii has established himself as one of the first artists to truly blend his musical creativity with his passion for games.

As the lines between games and the professional music industry continue to blur, we can’t wait to see which title he chooses to conquer next.