Onra
Onra is a man whose music is as complicated and unusual as his background. Since 2006 Onra has been digging up forgotten vinyl and transforming it into a party via MPCs, and his new EP Deep in the Night is as explosive as ever.
Onra (Arnaud Bernard) was born in Germany in 1981 to French parents. At a young age he moved to France, where he spent much of his time divided between Paris and the Ivory Coast. In 2007 he released Chinoiseries, a mix of Chinese and Vietnamese 60s vinyl blended with hip-hop — inspired by his trip to Asia. He followed up to this with Chinoiseries Pt. 2 in 2011. He’s pulled the same trickery with Bollywood music, and told us he’s about to tackle reggae.
Onra hit headlines in 2010 with his 80s homage LP Long Distance, the predecessor to the recent EP Deep in the Night. The album was featured in — among other places — Jay Z’s blog.
INTERVIEW:
Words with Onra, Jack of All Crates
REVIEW:
-Ronan Daly