Lumière: Like A Dream
Like a dream, Lumière transports her listeners to a nostalgic past in alien yet comforting ways. Born and raised in Buenos Aires, she left home for another distant yet familiar metropolis (Barcelona), and fell in love with it. Having immersed herself in the dance music scene for the past 7 years to date, she's a resident for the ultimate girl gang party Mistress. She has played at the best spots in the city (Red58, Macarena, Eightsquare, meetingpoint) and most recently headlined the hottest new club Warehouse, Mallorca. We take a moment to listen to her story and a dreamy new podcast from the cosmic selector herself.
Hi Lucy, how’s it going? You just finished recording a podcast for us – thank you! Can you give us a little introduction… did you have a concept in mind?
Hello! It’s a massive pleasure for me, so thank you. The truth is that it took me some time to decide what style to make the selection; it always happens to me that the more I think about it the more it confuses me. Then in the end I let myself be carried away by what I feel in that moment and the sound just comes from inside of me… I think it's the best way to show what the persona is really feeling. Improvising is how I identify with myself. In this case I started with calmer sounds and I progressed little by little.
So you’ve been living in Barcelona for some time now, but you’re originally from Buenos Aires. What made you move?
I've been living in Barcelona for 7 years now. Each day I love it more and more. You know, it was by intuition that I decided to come here - I always imagined living outside of my country, besides that it’s a very complete city, and being here I discovered how much further inspiration brings you. Barcelona has something very special for me.
It’s obvious the two cities have many things in common but also differences that set them apart. If you had a friend visiting you for the first time in Barcelona and you had just 24 hours, what would you do?
24 hours is nothing! There are so many places to visit, first the beach... people always want to see the sea. We’d start with lunch there, then we’d walk through the older more historic neighbourhoods such as Barceloneta, El Borne, El Gotico. It really depends who the person is… perhaps they’d want a tour at the vinyl stores! But for sure watching the sunset from "Los Bunkers" in the neighborhood of Carmel and its 360° view. That vista is where I met my ‘twin’ Valy. To close the day, assuming it’s a weekend, we’d go to a party or club for example Red58 – it’s the latest club to open in Barcelona, a great spot.
And in Buenos Aires?
Buenos Aires is huge and I’ve been ‘missing’ from there for a long time, I'd say that I’ve become a tourist too! Ahahaha. But I love the Palermo neighbourhood, it’s like a huge forest. For sure I’d take the friend to a good barbecue. We’d drink a nice bottle of Malbec whilst listening to the tango.
It sounds gorgeous! Let’s turn back to Barcelona for a moment – you’re part of the bSIDE roster. How did that come about?
Being a part of the bSIDE roster came up when I met Valy. You know, we were born to be friends. We were born on the same day, the same month, the same year – we’re twins! Just from different continents ahah. Furthermore we share the same love for music. This has to mean something. She thought I’d be a perfect match for the roster. Without hesitation I accepted :).
You’re also the resident DJ for Mistress parties. The party is not exclusive (open to all) but the concept is female - is this correct? Is there a Mistress sound?
Mistress is a multi-functional art platform that focuses on electronic music, aiming to support local talents. The party was created by ISAbella, currently resident DJ of Loud & Contact and Maricas (her new project). Before this there was nothing in our scene run by a woman, so the platform plays even more of a central role, all the while inspiring to other females around. I’m proud to be a resident DJ, and with Isa we make a good team, girl power!
So who are some of your favourite female icons?
Without any doubt the great and unique Grace Jones.
You recently shared news of a repress that’s due to come out on Move D’s Kunststoff. You’ve mentioned that it’s one of your favourites. What sounds and elements do you like to hear?
Why I'm passionate about this album is because it’s a dreamer, and with its melancholic melodies it has it all. The songs with the basses – that’s my favourite instrument! Whatever the style or genre, the sound of the bass captivates me.
In your opinion, a couple of other releases that deserve a repress?
There are many, but to tell you just one it’d have to be the Automatic Tasty - Sentimental choices of CPU Records. The great thing is that many records like Kunststoff are now being repressed – I’ve been waiting a while for it!
Your star sign is a Virgo which explains my demand towards the world .
If you could go back in time, one piece of advice that you’d give to your younger self?
She’d tell me not to waste time with certain nonsense and just go straight to the point.
You wouldn’t be the person you are now if it wasn’t for…
My family.
Lumière: Like A Dream
Edited by Kajol Shah
Photograph by Roman Yakubson