Premiere: MZA seeks sonic enlightenment with ‘dharma delight’
Listen to ‘absolution (can you dig it?)’ from his sophomore EP, releasing May 19 via Yen Disco Soundsystem
Rave revivalism meets intelligent introspection on MZA’s forthcoming EP, ‘dharma delight’.
The EP charts the Japanese-Singaporean producer’s journey towards “sonic personal enlightenment” across four tracks that explore breakbeat, jungle, and hardcore. The EP opens with ‘absolution (can you dig it?)’, a potent breakbeat stepper which sets the tone for the experimental release while remaining its most dancefloor-ready track.
‘dharma delight’ is MZA’s sophomore EP and will be released later this month on Yen Disco Soundsystem, the Tokyo / Singapore-based label he runs with partner Yenboy. ‘dharma delight’ sees MZA craft more euphoric and elemental atmospheres compared to his June 2021 debut, ‘Balmoral’; an EP that was rooted in jazzier, downtempo vibes channelling nostalgia.
‘absolution (can you dig it?)’ and the titles of the EP’s other three tracks (‘sunday best’, ‘shambhala’ and ‘dharma delight’) point to MZA’s thematic inspiration, which draws from autobiographical memories and a cross-cultural spiritualism. His sonic palette, meanwhile, is indebted to the ‘90s UK underground…
Listen to ‘absolution (can you dig it?)’ below.
MZA will release ‘dharma delight’ on Friday, May 19, via Yen Disco Soundsystem on Bandcamp and SoundCloud.
Mengzy is Mixmag Asia’s Music Culture Columnist, follow her on Instagram.
