Hiro Kone

Operating under the Hiro Kone moniker, New York-based Nicky Mao produces layered, immersive electronic compositions. Her sound shifted from the rich, vocal-centered ambient pop of her first release in 2011 toward the shadowed, near-industrial techno of Pure Expenditure in 2018, with rhythmically driven pieces that prioritize the articulation of elusive emotions over dance-floor utility.

Previously active in the experimental post-punk outfit Effi Briest, Mao launched her solo Hiro Kone project in 2011. That same year brought her self-titled debut EP, after which she began appearing at New York venues including the Knitting Factory. She appeared on David Van Tieghem’s 2013 album Fits & Starts. In 2014 she issued two further EPs: the voice-focused The Unmoved Mover on Group Tightener and the wordless Fallen Angels on Geographic North. After guest spots on recordings by Drew McDowall and Arp, her first full-length, Love Is the Capital, arrived via Geographic North in 2017 and included a contribution from Wetware’s Roxy Farman. Mao and McDowall next teamed for the 2018 BANK Records NYC EP The Ghost of Georges Bataille. Later that year Dais Records released her second album, Pure Expenditure, which featured Little Annie on the track “Outside the Axiom.” The 2019 set A Fossil Begins to Bray explored themes of discovery and introspection.