fabric Originals / UK / 2026 / 12"
DJ Nobu returns to fabric’s fabric Originals with Shō, a five-track EP of introspective, transcendent electronics shaped by meditation, reflection and the rhythms of life in Tokyo.
Each track draws from the Brahmavihāras — the four ‘Sublime States’ of Buddhist practice: Muditā (joy), Karuṇā (compassion), Mettā (loving-kindness) and Upekkhā (equanimity). Moving through these emotional and spiritual states, Shō unfolds as a journey toward openness, balance and acceptance.
The kinetic pulse of Muditā captures the feeling of emerging from darkness into renewal, while Karuṇā channels compassion and interconnectedness, inspired in part by the quiet humanity of Perfect Days by Wim Wenders. With Mettā, the EP bursts open in a moment of emotional expansion, dissolving boundaries between self and others. Finally, Upekkhā settles into a state of calm clarity, its hypnotic repetitions reflecting a mind that has become steady and unshaken.
The title Shō refers to living in alignment with Buddhist truth — a mindful awareness that even the simple act of breathing is life itself.