Darkwave project Ill Humans has unveiled its brooding and melancholic video for “Whatever”, following their debut performance live in Los Angeles on September 1st.
“Whatever” has a timeless darkwave sound, casting off with driving bass and murmuring keys in a haze of somber purgatory. This altogether conjures such a timeless and familiar hypnotic melody that ultimately evokes the sonic tapestry of music found on mid 80s 4AD releases, to more modern tracks issued through Fabrika records throughout the waning decade.
On the song, Arvid explains:
“I was visiting a close friend in Seattle at the end of the summer of 2018. My mind at the time was very conflicted and I was in a heavily contemplative state of being. One day my friend Kiryl had to spend the entire day at work and I was left completely alone in the old downtown apartment. Every time I visit Seattle, for whatever reason I feel very melancholic. I opened the computer, and even though at the moment I had no direct inspiration, I began building a structure for a song. Like I always do, I laid down the drums and the bass first, then basic pads. Kiryl returned to a one and a half minute demo which I lazily dubbed “whatever”, after which he put on his headphones and started hitting the keys. He then showed me what he’s done and that’s what you hear in the final song. I was blown away by how he was able to catch on to my mood and follow through.
We borrowed his friend’s $40 beginner bundle electric guitar with a plastic toy tone, on which I recorded the overly simplistic guitar riffs to fill the blanks. It was never planned, and as it tends to happen, the work you’re most proud of is born from that spontaneity. Five months later with a bottle of red blend, inside another extremely empty space, within an hour I wrote the lyrics to this song. Although it was not intended to be about me or anybody I know, it may very well apply. Ill Humans can carry both personal and universal connotations.”
On the video for “Whatever” Arvid Continues:
“I think the music video is trying to show the contemplative and insecure mental state of the character, but avoiding overly dramatic shots to emphasize that. The wandering around can be a metaphor for that uncertainty, and although currently unable to reach a desired conclusion, the person still gives effort. On the contrary, Edo’s character stands for something of a repressed other side, which decides to come to terms with the fact that life can suck and does not want to risk wandering and looking for a solution that may not even be out there. I would explain my thought process further, but I really think that it’s most fun for the listener to develop their own interpretations. There have already been several and it’d be great to hear more.”
Watch the video for “Whatever” below:
Ill Humans was conceived in the autumn of 2017 in Long Beach, CA by Arvid Arays with a demo of “Daisies”, then known as “Empty”.
2018 was spent sporadically writing the songs that would make up the EP, each as a result of an emotional outpour.
At the beginning of 2019, tracking and final mixing of every song were complete and “The Disruption of Binaries” was put out on March 7 as Arays’ solo effort. In June of 2019, Eduardo Mora (Edo) was officially announced as the second member of the band. September 1st saw the duo perform their first-ever live show at The Blvd in Los Angeles, California. A full-length debut is in the works, with the release date slated for Q1 of 2020.
Order “The Disruption of Binaries” here
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