The New LoFi

Japanese composer, Erika Dohi, teases her second album “Myth of Tomorrow” with new single

New York Times describes the Osaka-born, New York-based pianist Erika Dohi as “virtuosic.” Mix Mag takes that a step further and says she’s a “barrier-defying artist.” One thing is for sure: she creates genre-bending sound that jumps between being classical and electronic. Her music easily moves between being improvisational and atmospheric to something that feels more comfortable on the dancefloor.

On her new single, “Ame Onna,” the first half of the song drifts along until it switches gears into a ambient future bass groove to finish off the track.  The track is semi-autobiographical; in Japanese folklore, ame onna, or ‘rain woman,’ brings rain wherever she goes, and Erika so herself in that vision.

“Since I was a little kid, I knew I was an ame onna,” admits Erika when talking about the new single. “I was born in June, right in the heart of Japan’s monsoon season, and I felt like I was always surrounded by rain. It followed me on school trips, birthdays, any day I really wished it wouldn’t. It even rained on my wedding day. Over time, I’ve learned to embrace that part of me—not as bad luck, but as something quietly powerful and deeply tied to emotion.”

The new single weaves personal myth with the universal tension between holding on and letting go. The image of a flower that doesn’t wilt speaks to our unnatural obsession with permanence, perfection, and emotional control. But rain teaches us something softer—that there is strength in vulnerability, and that release can be a form of resilience. In a world that often silences emotion, this song is a quiet permission to cry, to feel, and to honor the beauty in impermanence.

“Ame Onna” appears on Erika’s second album, Myth of Tomorrow (set to release in October). The album incorporates traditional Japanese instruments, the iconic Fairlight CMI synthesizer, and Erika’s own mesmeric singing. Look out for Myth of Tomorrow later this year.