Teebs

Estara (Brainfeeder)

16/20

It now feels like a long time since Flying Lotus shimmied onto the scene, bringing his dislocated beats and the Brainfeeder label with him. Teebs was right there from the outset, with his debut album Ardour ticking some of the right boxes but somehow coming across a little floral and noncommittal. Behold, then, Estara – a quantum leap forward in confidence and a masterly set of sparkling, winsome electronica. Album opener The Endless is a gurgling beauty, while the ghostly, psychedelic Holiday (featuring Sydney-based artist Jonti) is a welcome progression for an artist who has previously eschewed vocal collaborators. The core of the album, though, is a pair of tracks – Shoouss Lullaby and SOTM – that Jon Hopkins would be proud to call his own. Intricate, looped acoustic guitars and twinkling, rhythmic bells nestle in the crackling fissures produced by machinery being bent to the emo- tional will of its operator. Although this is unapologetically gentle music, it takes balls to make tunes this reserved and refined. Dreamy and delicate, Estara elevates Teebs from Brainfeeder B-team to label leading light.

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Words: Adam Corner