Henna Onna has a carefully crafted sound that was made for vinyl, a predilection for the kind of warm, enveloping deep house that doesn’t sound right unless it’s carved into a physical groove. Maboroshi is the Yerevan, Armenia based producer’s first release on wax, appearing on the Russian imprint Deeppa Records. And she makes the most of it, packing six tracks of luscious, captivating deep house on one disc.
“Bito Takeshi” is an excellent selection for the lead — at once immersive and propulsive, a four note pattern repeating like a zen koan. There’s a stillness, a quietude to “Bito Takeshi.” It’s a showcase for Henna Onna’s delicate production style, in which everything seems essential, and whole, and precisely placed, from a rhythmic burst of static to the warm resonance of wooden sticks striking steel. Track titles lean on Japanese language terms, a concept that extends to the music, which evokes a universe re-colored in the saturated tones of Nihonga prints.
“Shibuya Oiran” originally appeared as the lead track for Deeppa’s 2024 Part of Deeppa Vol 2 compilation and offers an uptempo, highly dancefloor-friendly slice of moody deep house. Onna here owes much to Theo Parrish, to the musicality of Jon Dixon but most of all I hear an echo of another deep house artist inspired by a distinct vision of Japan, Rick Wade. To that end, Kuniyuki Takahashi contributes a new remix, atmospheric and fulsome with soulful rhythms and chords that reverberate and escape into the sky.
The B-side opens with the more ambient title track — my phone tells me “Maboroshi” means “illusion” in Japanese — in which Onna experiments with her own voice. “Enoshima” follows with the EP’s most dubby, deep and dancefloor-friendly cut. Satoshi Fumi remixes “Enoshima” with a hydraulic Chicago jack and an unexpected burst of vocal-drunk ’90s energy spiked with a gorgeous acid riff. It makes for a fierce, fiery climax to Maboroshi, a career-elevating record for Henna Onna.
⚪️ Maboroshi Tracklisting
Henna Onna: Maboroshi EP (Deeppa Records / 12” Vinyl + Digital)
A1. "Bito Takeshi"
A2. "Shibuya Oiran"
A3. "Shibuya Oiran" (Kuniyuki Inst Deep dub version)
B1. "Maboroshi"
B2. "Enoshima"
B3. "Enoshima" (Satoshi Fumi remix)
⚪️ Disclosure Statement
This record was submitted as a promo.
5 Mag Issue 225
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