It’s a little hard to place your finger on the music of Estère. It’s a stunning blend of soul, jazz, funk, and hip-hop beats – all wrapped up in flawless production.
She describes it as “Electric Blue Witch-Hop“… and that’s actually a pretty bang-on description. It’s simultaneously vibrant and haunting; a careful balance between exuberance and melancholy.
A careful balance between exuberance and melancholy; New Zealand artist Estère crafts some of the most beautiful music we’ve come across in a long time.
The New Zealand artist describes herself as “a girl with an MPC she calls Lola,” and it’s with this MPC that she crafts sprawlingly lush soundscapes that draw you in and melt your mind.
“She is the centrepiece of my programming and she is a dear friend!” Estère says of her Lola. “We’ve known each other for 6 years… and for that reason she is called Lola, as to me she wears a personality.”
“I began making beats with Lola when I was studying at university, and haven’t looked back since. We’ve toured the world together and she has been at my side for two albums.”
It was off the back of her most recent album My Design, On Others’ Lives that Estère toured Europe and the UK – and she did so quite extensively.
“I enjoy traveling, seeing new places and meeting new people. Playing live shows is one of my favourite parts of being a musician… that being said it can be exhausting,” she says of the tour.
“I travelled with my machine band comprised of an MPC, Micro-Korg, Roto-toms and an electric guitar for this tour… so I had two 23 kilo suitcases to carry through Germany, France, Spain, Belgium and the UK.
“Luckily they have really good rolly-wheels, so I could push them along for the most part. There was some heavy lifting though.”
Entering into Estère’s music feels somewhat like entering into a body of water; it’s completely immersive and perpetually changing.
“I love the underwater realm. The mystery and power of the ocean is something that has always been part of my life growing up in NZ.”
“I think the natural environment of where I grew up has effected my perspective deeply and that is shown in my music too.”
Next month, Estère will performing in Australia as part of Brisbane’s BIGSOUND festival.
“It’s my 4th time playing in Australia as I have toured here before,” she says of her upcoming visit.
“But I’m really looking forward to learning some new things about music and other artists. It’s always really inspiring to be shown new perspectives, insights and ways of doing things.”
Don’t miss your chance to catch Estère live this September. More info on her BIGSOUND appearances here.
