la plimbare – l a p l i m b a r e
12.2.18 by Ryan Masteller

Mostly you get the sea – that’s not surprising given the recording process and locale of la plimbare’s debut, re-released on cassette via London’s ACR. That’s because Romanian artist Diana Voinea, aka la plimbare, compiled her field recordings “in the town of Constanta, Romania – on the shore of the Black Sea.” Surely the vast expanse of water, dense with its own weight and pressure, glistening in the midday sun, would make its presence felt on something so indebted to it in its creation. If that Jcard artwork is any indication – and it is – Voinea was equally enthralled by, awed by, immersed in, and vastly removed from the location of her fieldwork.

You can even imagine the sound of seagulls squawking at points, flying over beachgoers, shitting on umbrellas, eating discarded sandwiches, and generally being a supreme nuisance.

What’s great about “l a p l i m b a r e” is how effortlessly the sound sources are mixed with Voinea’s accoutrements, as she displays a light touch when compiling the tracks. The sounds of the ocean and the beach blend with the ambience of the town itself, at different parts of the day, in different weather conditions. Voinea’s able to complete the picture of her surroundings for us, presenting them as sound and letting our imaginations fill in the rest. There are even three remixes appended to the original release, as Rui P. Andrade, Nate Scheible, and Endurance basically mold the time and space presented by la plimbare to fit their own worldviews (to delightful results).

You can still grab one of the edition of 70 pro-dubbed C81 cassettes from ACR, but you better act fast: only 12 left as of this writing!