Web-Style Baroque: Beautiful Digicore of the Post-Covid Age~

    Web-Style Baroque, alternatively known as Baroque Digicore, is a development in the sound of post-quarantine Digicore that has been growing in internet music scenes since ~2023, pioneered by the Elfaction collective and most notably lostrushi/Lucy Bedroque. Named for its complex arrangements more reminscent of classical ballads than traditional hip hop and by an aesthetic influence from Lithuania rapper Yabujin and his 2020 Baroque EP, the genre is defined by intricate DAW compositions, feminine, auto-tuned vocals, and nostalgic emotional atmospheres. Often characteristic of the genre too are aesthetic influences from visual novels and samples sourced from 2000s DSI soundtracks. Key releases within the genre include Lucy Bedroque's 2023 tape Sisterhood and Fête de la vanille EP (2024), Zayok's From Zay With Love, Lucy Bedroque friend and collaborator Sayako's 2024 record Melancholy; Hot or Cold ? and fellow Elfaction collective member 7Nightz's Enlightenment I EP (2024). 

Notable Artists:

Lucy Bedroque - Fête de la vanille (2024)

    Most famous within the scene is Los Angeles producer/
singer-songwriter Lucy Bedroque, known previously as lostrushi prior to late 2023. Beginning their musical career over underground rap Discord servers, early singles like Maple, Triplet, and most famously True Perspective showcase his early use of high-pitched, autontuned vocals, sentimental/emotive moods and cover art featuring anime girls. Their 2023 debut tape, Sisterhood, would be influential on the Baroque Digicore sound (especially so with the intricate arrangements of tracks Take Me Back and Infinitude / Uroboros), though the sound would be truly defined by 2024 tracks Sweet Pitcher, How to Pretend and Knot Me, released on the Amy and Fête de la vanille EPs respectively. The tracks are characterized by layered and progressive arrangements - very skillful and intricate DAW arrangements, - with How to Pretend in particular likely being the biggest song the scene has seen yet. With later releases like 2025's Unmusique, Lucy seems to have shifted from the Baroque Digicore sound to a more rage adjacent sound, though those 2024 EPs and Fête de la vanille in particular are essential documents to the sound of the genre. 

Elfaction:

    Friend and collaborator of Lucy Bedroque, Sayako began releasing music in 2022, frequently working with 7Nightz which, alongside Juneforever, Junshi, Pegasisflame, Syrgn, and others, formed the #Incestboyz collective, a group which laid the foundation for what would later become the Elfaction collective. Sayako’s early music was influenced heavily by EDM, often using bouncy basslines characteristic of such music alongside samples sourced from JRPGs. Sayako’s visual aesthetics made use of the anime aesthetics Elfaction and the genre is associated with and have remained largely unchanged over time. Sayako’s debut album Melancholy, Hot or Cold?~ released December 27, 2024, serving to be a major milestone for Sayako and Elfaction, propelling Sayako and the collective into an amount of popularity the group had yet to see before. In 2026, Sayako released his mixtape With Undying Love, and Chocolates.

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    7Nightz (also known as Nightz, Jxrdann, and Güaard) is a prolific artist in the Eflaction scene and a pioneer of the Baroque Digicore genre. Beginning his career in late 2021, his music takes inspiration from Yabujin and JRPG/visual novel soundtracks distinctive of the scene. 7Nightz’ early aesthetic is notable for its single titles with illegible fonts and hentai/JRPG visuals for cover art, much like Sayako. Nightz' Enlightenment I EP (released November 3, 2024) makes use of acoustic instrumental and airy production, alongside beautiful and sentimental atmospheres. The tape is unique for its more traditionally hardcore rap vocals combined with higher, sulkier sing-song vocals. In 2025, 7Nightz made a noticeable shift in his aesthetic, taking inspiration from Alice in Wonderland and medieval art. The Letter Demos mark a change in musical style for 7Nightz. Instead of the JRPG soundtrack style hewas best known for, The Letter Demos make use of classical instruments to create an almost oppressive atmosphere contrasted with elegant strings and high pitched vocals. The lyrics primarily revolve around themes of the occult and romance. His new style feels like a progression of the sound debuted by Enlightenment I.

    Elfaction has numerous members aside from Sayako and 7Nightz. Most notably Datealyfe and Kumosai are all current members who contribute a lot to the scene's monthly listeners. 777Forevermore/Juneforever stands out among Elfaction for his wavier, cloud rap inspired sound, described as "Heavenly scapes tinged with dark ambiance" on Spotify. Tracks such as cleric display his sound well, though Juneforever's music can differ from the sound of Baroque Digicore. 

Further listening:

Zayok - In Elsewhere (2025)

    GlitchnB artist Zayok released his debut record From Zay 
With Love  (released November 25, 2023) at only 14 years old, though the music displayed sounds that of a much more experienced producer. Taking cues from the music of Lucy Bedroque alongside classic R&B, 2010s DAW electronica à la Clarence Clarity and Mid air Theif and earlier quarantine-era Digicore. Track 6, i still mean it now, is particularly emblematic of the Web-Style Baroque sound due to its extended string intro and digitally modified vocals, which build to a dense and cathartically produced drop, characterized by hard-hitting drums, piercing guitar and glitchy production chops. Despite lacking the popularity of Lucy Bedroque or Sayako (also not sharing the same East Asian-influenced aesthetics), the record establishes itself as a staple within the genre for it for its instrumental variety, intricate production, and progressive songwriting. In Elsewhere (2025) and the Oh! Give me something to Believe in single (2026) maintain their roots in the Baroque Digicore sound while also innovating within Zayok's sound, pulling from lesser used styles such as the LA Beat Music of Flying Lotus and UK Bass and UK Garage music (Zayok currently has the album cover for dubstep/future garage classic Untrue by Burial as his YouTube profile picture, further supporting the influence from UK electronica). 

    Other notable artists include California's bappy, notable for their Empty Stomach, Wilting Faith EP (2025) and Miami's roachg1rl, of whom her Watchme single has been reviewed here. Artists adjacent to the scene include Twikipedia and Kuru.

- stillbeaches & CountSwagula