Debit's Desaceleradas: A Dub-Infused Descent into the Abyss of Cumbia Rebaída
Mexican-American producer Delia Beatriz, aka Debit, has long demonstrated a talent for recontextualizing historical sounds through her music. Her 2022 breakthrough album, The Long Count, featured woozy ambient soundscapes crafted from electronically processed samples of ancient Maya flutes. On her latest record, Desaceleradas (Decelerated), Beatriz turns her attention to the Afro-Latin dance genre of cumbia, slowing its tempo to a dub-influenced crawl.
The result is a sonic experience that defies recognition, veering between the ambient textures of William Basinski's Disintegration Loops and the chopped'n'screwed production style of DJ Screw. Beatriz's arrangement of La Ronda y el Sonidero and Vinilos Tranacionales transforms the signature cumbia shuffle and twanging synth melody into an eerie, ethereal soundworld that recalls nightmare fairground music and yearning drones.
What begins as a straightforward exercise in slowing down material to its lowest possible bpm quickly becomes something more unsettling. Beatriz's granular dissection of sounds creates a sensation akin to sea sickness, as notes and melodies appear to shift and contort in unexpected ways. This uneasy quality is the antithesis of background meditative ambience, instead conveying a sense of dread and discomfort that lingers long after the music ends.
Through Desaceleradas, Beatriz demonstrates a remarkable feat: she shows how slowness and subtlety can be used to contain just as much tension as chaos. The album is an aural journey into the heart of cumbia rebajada, a style that originated in Colombia as a reaction against the faster-paced, more energetic sound of traditional cumbia. Beatriz's experiments with slow tempo and atmospheric distortion have given birth to a new sonic entity, one that is both fascinating and unnerving.
Ultimately, Desaceleradas is an album that will appeal to those who enjoy experimental music that challenges their expectations. It is not an easy listen, but it is certainly a thought-provoking one, inviting listeners to immerse themselves in its slow-burning, ambient textures and confront the strange beauty of cumbia rebajada reimagined for the modern era.
Mexican-American producer Delia Beatriz, aka Debit, has long demonstrated a talent for recontextualizing historical sounds through her music. Her 2022 breakthrough album, The Long Count, featured woozy ambient soundscapes crafted from electronically processed samples of ancient Maya flutes. On her latest record, Desaceleradas (Decelerated), Beatriz turns her attention to the Afro-Latin dance genre of cumbia, slowing its tempo to a dub-influenced crawl.
The result is a sonic experience that defies recognition, veering between the ambient textures of William Basinski's Disintegration Loops and the chopped'n'screwed production style of DJ Screw. Beatriz's arrangement of La Ronda y el Sonidero and Vinilos Tranacionales transforms the signature cumbia shuffle and twanging synth melody into an eerie, ethereal soundworld that recalls nightmare fairground music and yearning drones.
What begins as a straightforward exercise in slowing down material to its lowest possible bpm quickly becomes something more unsettling. Beatriz's granular dissection of sounds creates a sensation akin to sea sickness, as notes and melodies appear to shift and contort in unexpected ways. This uneasy quality is the antithesis of background meditative ambience, instead conveying a sense of dread and discomfort that lingers long after the music ends.
Through Desaceleradas, Beatriz demonstrates a remarkable feat: she shows how slowness and subtlety can be used to contain just as much tension as chaos. The album is an aural journey into the heart of cumbia rebajada, a style that originated in Colombia as a reaction against the faster-paced, more energetic sound of traditional cumbia. Beatriz's experiments with slow tempo and atmospheric distortion have given birth to a new sonic entity, one that is both fascinating and unnerving.
Ultimately, Desaceleradas is an album that will appeal to those who enjoy experimental music that challenges their expectations. It is not an easy listen, but it is certainly a thought-provoking one, inviting listeners to immerse themselves in its slow-burning, ambient textures and confront the strange beauty of cumbia rebajada reimagined for the modern era.
she's like a genius or something! i mean, who else could take this super upbeat cumbia vibe and turn it into somethin so eerie and unsettling? 
i love how she slows down the tempo and adds all these dub-influenced effects to create this whole new sonic entity. it's like she's speakin a different language or somethin! 
i was a bit skeptical at first, but once i got into it, i was HOOKED 
desaceleradas is def one of the most thought-provoking albums i've listened to in ages, and i'm already dyin to see what she comes up with next 
, dude it's like her music is trying to hypnotize me or something 
but at the same time its so beautiful and unsettling... i mean who knew cumbia could sound like this? 
. It sounds super experimental and kinda weird, you know? Like, what's the point of making music if it's just gonna make me feel all uneasy and stuff? 
️ Debit's Desaceleradas is like being trapped in a never-ending elevator ride with a wonky soundtrack 
. I mean, slowing down a genre as upbeat as cumbia to a crawl and then adding all these ambient textures sounds like a lot of work, but Debit makes it sound...cool? 
. Like, what even is the point of all these concerts and festivals celebrating Latin music if our planet is just gonna burn out? 
.
. As a fan of experimental music, I appreciate her willingness to take risks and push boundaries with traditional sounds like cumbia. The way she slows down those classic beats and adds these eerie, ambient textures is both mesmerizing and disorienting at the same time 
. Like, what was she even going for with some of those sound manipulations? It felt like she was trying to torture me with all the weird notes and melodies 
.
. The way Beatriz deconstructs these classic cumbia tracks and rebuilds them from scratch is like watching a masterclass in sound design 
. And I gotta give it to her – she's definitely got the skills to make this slow-burning, ambient soundworld work 
. It might not be everyone's cup of tea, but I think it's definitely worth giving a spin 
.
i mean, i get what she's trying to do - it's like, experimental vibes and all that jazz - but is it too much? 
i'm not sure if i'd wanna listen to this stuff on repeat or just have it play in the background while i do other things... maybe that's the point though? 
anyway, gotta respect her creativity and willingness to push boundaries 
. I'm not gonna lie, it's not the easiest listen, but it's definitely thought-provoking. If you enjoy experimental music that'll make you question your perceptions, then Desaceleradas might be right up your alley.
. The producer, Delia Beatriz, is like a surgeon dissecting sounds to create this eerie atmosphere that's just not my vibe 
but in a good way! i love how beatriz dissects sounds & creates this sense of dread & discomfort, its not just background music, u feel me? 
. At first, I was like "what the heck is going on?", but once you get into it, it's actually super hypnotic 
. I love how she's pushing the boundaries of what cumbia can be, making it all dark and moody... it's like a sonic experience that'll leave you feeling uneasy, but in a good way 
I just listened to Debit's new album Desaceleradas and it's like a rollercoaster ride in my brain 
. It's like someone took all the tension out of music and put it in my stomach 
. But in a weird way, that's what makes it so fascinating? The album's like an experiment with sound, trying to break the rules of what we expect from music 
.
! She takes these traditional cumbia tracks and turns them into something completely different. It's like a sonic maze that you gotta navigate through 
. I love how she uses granular dissection to create this sense of unease and discomfort 
. And the way she slows down the tempo is genius 
.
. It's like she took something old and made it new again