What Ails You is a noise-driven, IDM-influenced, mesmerizing and cathartic expression of music producer Essvus’ (Gen Morigami) long struggles with mental health, familial estrangement, and reconnection with art, creation, and community. “When I started working on this music, I was in the midst of a severe, self-destructive depression that had already lasted for years,” explains Essvus. “I hadn’t come to terms with the fact that my father was a cult leader until 2020, when, in one of his outbursts, he cut ties with me over email. It was a manipulation tactic, to make me crawl back to him. Only then did I realize I had endured decades of narcissistic abuse and psychological torment." On What Ails You, Essvus weaves his way through a tangle of warmth, solace, and beauty enmeshed with darker aspects of life.