For starters, quilium puts out the caveat that each song is hand-made without the use of AI and I can’t blame them. With the high wave of AI-assisted artists and even record labels, the boundaries between human and virtual are not only being crossed but also abused. The first record, “rough DRAFTING” featuring Froggy Z and Swift ONE, sets the tone for what quilium calls darkwave production. The production is layered, distorted and haphazard in good and weird ways. I am always one for unorthodox musical styles, but this is beyond my comprehension. It has hip-hop elements with an experimental bedroom feel, and the vocal mix sounds like it’s coming out of a transistor radio. The ambiance can be classified as lofi, to some degree, but there are many other musical elements that stray from it.

Tracks like “i don’t know WHY” and “uncertain FIGURES” would reshape people’s expectations and highlight quilium’s unpredictability. The former has a retro-pop/folk feel and is underpinned by playful melodic runs, while the latter goes for a dark rock vibe with heavy distorted guitar riffs, rumbling bass-driven grooves and off-kilter vocal effects. “jelly SOMETIMES” is an acoustic guitar-driven piece with a recurring engaging motif and a whole lot of joking around. quilium obviously doesn’t overthink the process and keeps their topics grounded. Another record that I do like is “sweep the KEYS,” which is a trippy, psychedelic piece comprising moody textures, lush guitar licks and downtempo drums with a familiar pad that reminds me of the classic jazz instrumental “Summer Madness” by Kool & the Gang.

The subject matter runs through various streams on the project and finds quilium in a constant state of stream of consciousness. From reflective thoughts to playful and unorthodox singing to spoken word-type performances, the artistry can be classified as being fluid, dynamic and out of the box, if I may add. As for features, this is kept to a minimum and has Froggy Z on more than two tracks, the other being producer CHAD, who produces the thought-provoking, anti-capitalist anthem “art is DEAD.”

Bedroom music often gets a bad rap for being unprofessional in certain circles, but at the end of the day, the onus ultimately falls on the creator and their goals. From music hobbyists to artists looking for life-changing breakthroughs, I think it’s best to separate those paths and look at the core of the creative process itself.

Overall, quilium doesn’t play by the conventional rules and breaks all types of musical laws on human void CRASS JUNKIE.