His first full-length, 2010's Ardour, was an effort that came together in the midst of personal turmoil and the death of his father. In contrast, E s t a r a was created during a period of relative calm; more importantly, the LP encapsulates a time when Teebs - 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. E s t a r a contains plenty of the breezy melodies, rustling rhythms, gauzy atmospherics, and loose ties to hip-hop that have always been present in Teebs' 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 "The Endless" and "View Point", flirting with leftfield pop on collaborative efforts "Holiday" (featuring Jonti) and "Hi Hat" (featuring Populous), looping guitars on "Shoouss Lullaby" and "NY pt. 2" (featuring his Sons of the Morning partner Prefuse 73), or getting pensive on the shuffling "NY pt. 1" and the melancholy "Piano Days", Teebs sounds sharply focused, impeccably nuanced, and spiritually potent.