{"product_id":"bf044","title":"Teebs - E s t a r a","description":"\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIn Spanish, the word \u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eestar\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e means \"to be\", but there's more to it than that. More specifically, \u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eestar\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e refers to where someone is at - physically or mentally - at a specific moment. Simply put, there's nothing permanent about it, which is a big reason why \u003cem\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/ninjatune.net\/release\/teebs\/e-s-t-a-r-a\"\u003eE s t a r a\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e is the perfect title for the second full-length album from \u003cstrong\u003eMtendere Mandowa\u003c\/strong\u003e, better known as Los Angeles-based producer \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIn truth, the LP takes its name from the house where much of the record was created. Although \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e visited a handful of beautiful studios in the hills of Los Angeles in the process of creating the album, he ultimately kept coming back to his modest bedroom studio and the same Fruity Loops-based set-up that he's been using for years.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eWhen it comes down to it though, what's changed is \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e himself. His first full-length, 2010's \u003cem\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/release\/teebs-\/ardour\"\u003eArdour\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e, was an effort that came together in the midst of personal turmoil and the death of his father. In contrast, \u003cem\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/ninjatune.net\/release\/teebs\/e-s-t-a-r-a\"\u003eE s t a r a\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e was created during a period of relative calm; more importantly, the LP encapsulates a time when \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e - who continues to work steadily as both a producer and a painter - has been making art entirely on his own terms. That freedom has not only strengthened his creative voice, but has also enabled him to craft some of the finest work of his career.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/ninjatune.net\/release\/teebs\/e-s-t-a-r-a\"\u003eE s t a r a\u003c\/a\u003e \u003c\/em\u003econtains plenty of the breezy melodies, rustling rhythms, gauzy atmospherics, and loose ties to hip-hop that have always been present in \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e' music, but the LP also finds those elements coming together in a bolder, more cohesive fashion than ever before. Whether he's swirling melodic textures on songs like \"\u003cstrong\u003eThe Endless\u003c\/strong\u003e\" and \"\u003cstrong\u003eView Point\u003c\/strong\u003e\", flirting with leftfield pop on collaborative efforts \"\u003cstrong\u003eHoliday\u003c\/strong\u003e\" (featuring \u003cstrong\u003eJonti\u003c\/strong\u003e) and \"\u003cstrong\u003eHi Hat\u003c\/strong\u003e\" (featuring \u003cstrong\u003ePopulous\u003c\/strong\u003e), looping guitars on \"\u003cstrong\u003eShoouss Lullaby\u003c\/strong\u003e\" and \"\u003cstrong\u003eNY pt. 2\u003c\/strong\u003e\" (featuring his \u003cstrong\u003eSons of the Morning\u003c\/strong\u003e partner \u003cstrong\u003ePrefuse 73\u003c\/strong\u003e), or getting pensive on the shuffling \"\u003cstrong\u003eNY pt. 1\u003c\/strong\u003e\" and the melancholy \"\u003cstrong\u003ePiano Days\u003c\/strong\u003e\", \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e sounds sharply focused, impeccably nuanced, and spiritually potent.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIn the end, \u003cem\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/ninjatune.net\/release\/teebs\/e-s-t-a-r-a\"\u003eE s t a r a\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e is absolutely, undeniably a representation of \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e, but \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e as he is right now. He may no longer be the upstart beatmaker that FlyLo once took under his wing, but that doesn't mean that \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e has shed his past - he's simply evolved from it.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/ninjatune.net\/release\/teebs\/e-s-t-a-r-a\"\u003eE s t a r a\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e is a remarkable album in its own right, but it's ultimately just the latest step in what has already been an incredibly fruitful musical journey. We can only hope that every chapter of \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.ninjatune.net\/artist\/teebs\"\u003eTeebs\u003c\/a\u003e' story will prove to be this engaging.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ninjatune","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":44934132367519,"sku":"BFCD044","price":10.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"2xLP","offer_id":44934132400287,"sku":"BF044","price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0493\/8563\/5999\/products\/e-s-t-a-r-a-main.jpg?v=1736247204","url":"https:\/\/merch.ninjatune.net\/products\/bf044","provider":"Ninja Tune","version":"1.0","type":"link"}