Sunday Best
CD Reviews
INDIE ALBUM OF THE WEEK
Despite the hefty credits list on the inside of the gatefold CD, despite the multiple layers of instruments working alongside each other like synchronized swimming team, the cover if Sunday Best gives it all away: this is Bryan Estepa’s album. From sunkissed pop reveries to country-inflicted alt-folk, it’s all about Estepa. Piano lines prance around like California girls, guitars are gritty and an invisible choir of Estepa clones “bah-ba” and “la-la” in the background. He loves Neil Young as much as he does Neil Finn, and he mixes his colourful musical palette into his varied and hugely enjoyable second solo record, Sunday Best.
What Estepa knows best is melody. Sometimes the song structures aren’t as developed as they could have been and there’s sections of a handful of tunes that tend to wonder aimlessly in the sunshine, but it’s a forgivable gaffe in the light of strong numbers like ‘Aches and Shakes’, with its golden vocal harmonies, and ‘Skipping Days’, a tune that harks back to the alt-country of Whiskeytown, complete with the necessary Hammond organ. Even when you think you’ve got Estepa pegged, he pulls out ‘Myself’, which slams together Crazy Horse and Mott the Hoople.
It’s a credit to Bryan Estepa that he has the moxy to attempt full-blown rock songs, alt-country tunes and California pop on the one disc. What’s even more amazing is that he pulls it all off.
Dom Alessio – The Brag
These are pop songs that sound like old friends. The second album from Sydney’s Bryan Estepa is warm, wistful and wonderful. The influences are Americana – Beach Boys meets Fountains of Wayne with some Wilco thrown in. There’s even a song called Carl Wilson, celebrating Beach Boy Brian’s late little brother: ‘I never paid much attention to the bearded man on the side, ‘cause I was distracted by another who writes songs that can make me cry..I wish I could have met the youngest Wilson’. One of the year’s best pop records. Any day of the week.
Jeff Jenkins – 4/5 Stars; Music Australia Guide & Inpress
Bryan Estepa hones the art of jovial pop on his second full-length Sunday Best with all the bells and whistles we’ve come to expect from him. The aptly titles album is a cheeky play on acoustics with lush instrumentals, delicate riffs and the youthful voice of Estepa framed centrally. The twang of country guitar is met by slightly Spanish riffs and a hybrid of Americana and Australian Pop.
Orchestration is flawless, with lavish piano, gentle strings and a chameleon guitar detailing the record. While Estepa is vocally strong, the mix occasionally lets him down, with a few rough edges that of smoothed off could have bettered the project. The jaunty guitar of Different With You makes way for country electrics and the big bang of Estepa’s crystal voice. Like all good pop it never loses pace, with keys and guitar overlapping joyously in a flurry of mixed harmonies and gentle arrangements. The album continues to surprise with the dirty rock and roll of myself. Again, the slight fault of vocal pitch dampens what could have been a stellar effort. Regardless, he continues on with a seemingly perpetual energy and ramshackle country charm. The creaky coastal hum of worry me none is graced world old world violin; as a balladeer Estepa shows rewarding vocal restraint. He could bear to lean more on full instrumentals, though the title track delivers the perfect pop equation with swirling guitar, rising vocals and homely harmonies.
A local Gem.
Brooke Salisbury – Drum Media (19/08/08)
You can’t fault the pop formula – a catchy melody, some cute lyrics and a three minute window of subjective enjoyment. Well that’s not entirely correct – there are multiple opportunities to criticise the bland and turgid interpretations of the pop formula, but the constituent elements, and the regular quest of artists to marry those elements into a cogent, invigorating whole, is commendable.
Sydney’s Bryan Estepa has a good handle on the tried and true pop equation – it’s not coincidental that Estepa uses his new album, Sunday Best, to lament the fact that he never encountered the opportunity to meet Carl Wilson from the Beach Boys (on, curiously enough, Carl Wilson). Estepa’s pop sensibility errs on the lite and breezy side – Aches and Shakes has a Mamas and Papas sunny Californian edge to it, on Different Like You, the West Coast spirit is closer to the perfectly buffed FM pop of the late 1970s than the drug drenched 60s, and Roses combines pre and post T Rex Mark Bolan in a homogenous whole. I’m Going and Skipping Days ease right back, the introspective aspect of the latter saved from exhaustion by some country rock that could have come from The Eagles, if only Glenn and the boys had stayed away from the Columbian marching powder.
And lest it be thought that Estepa has excised rock from his pop world, there’s the brutally rocking Myself, all flourishing three chord rock and hair shaking frenzy. Throw in the bouncing acoustic happiness of Second Guess and the reflective, piano driven Sunday Best and it’s apparent Estepa knows just how to use stylish pop to interpret his world.
Patrick Emery - The Beat (20/08/08)
Here come the Aus Estepa, a lyrical gangster?
Actually he’s more like a lyrical librarian dressed in his Sunday best, for these are gentle tales backed by a subtle variant of power pop, full of small pleasures that soon add up to something worth listening to. Typical is ‘Aches and Shakes’ which begins ‘Is it OK if I see you tonight?’ - such a nice boy, politeness personified, the music swells like a heart experiencing love at first sight and it just about bursts when a female vocal adds a counterpoint. And it’s not finished yet: along comes a chorus that holds on as though it doesn’t want to let go of a cherished hand. ‘Carl Wilson’ gives away at least one of the influences and again is typical of the approach, doing the research and leaving aside the obvious.
There are quite a few books on his shelf. Acoustic Strumming - Advanced has a broken spine and gives rise to ‘Stars,’ his nose has been in Power Pop and the influence of Matthew Sweet as the guitars bristle on ‘Myself’ as he pushes dangerously close to noise - it’s a refreshing spring clean of a song. Estepa has quite a pedigree having spent time in both Swivel and Hazey Jane; this is his second solo record. He’s obviously learnt a lot in that time and this CD full of breezy summery pop is bound to gather some more admirers.
Dave Cowling – 7/10 Americana UK
On his second solo album, Sydneysider Bryan Estepa proves he is capable proponent of classic singer-songwriter pop, with invocations of deceased Beach Boys and women who are slipping away scored with winsome melodies, snatches of pedal steel guitar and unobtrusive vintage keyboards. What the album could do with is an unexpected resolution or two: sometimes it’s too carefully mapped out.
Craig Mathieson – 3/5 Stars; Sydney Morning Herald (25/7/08)
CD OF THE DAY – 9/7/08: BRYAN ESTEPA – SUNDAY BEST
I'm not sure what it is about Bryan Estepa's albums that leads me to initially underrate them. 2006's All The Bells & Whistles (which was released later in the year) came in at #28 in my top 100 that year, but as I've mentioned before, if I were doing the 2006 list from scratch today, it'd probably make the top ten. With that in mind, I eagerly anticipated his new one, Sunday Best, and figured I wouldn't underrate him this time. So I received it a little over a month ago, and immediately got distracted by another Popboomerang disc that came along with it, the Adrian Whitehead album. But now that a month has passed, I've gone from "yeah, that sounds nice" to "hey, that's really good" when I've hearing songs from the disc, so once again with the passage of time the quality of Bryan Estepa's work comes shining through.
As with the debut, Sunday Best finds Estepa with a sound that on one side recalls Michael Carpenter (who produced the debut) and Neil Finn, and the other leans into alt-country. Opener "Aches and Shakes" falls into the former category, with an easy-sounding, breezy melody that will bring a smile to your face. "Different With You" is more straight-ahead power pop, while "Stars" is straight-ahead folk/rock. Estepa has always counted the Beach Boys as an influence (i.e., the brilliant "Western Tale" from All The Bells & Whistles), and this time he pays an overt tribute in "Carl Wilson" that comes from the same place in the heart as, say, the Replacements' "Alex Chilton".
Elsewhere, Estepa rocks harder than ever on "Myself", channels Gram Parsons on "Skipping Days" and "Worry Me None", ventures into Elliott Smith territory on "Second Guess" and then closes it in perfect fashion with the slow-building title track that encapsulates all of his styles in the space of 5:01. A great talent and a great album.
Steve – Absolute Powerpop
Sydney's Bryan Estepa released the classic "All the Bells and Whistles" last year. Although his newest isn't as chock full of high energy pop goodies, it's a more mature and even release. Bryan moves beyond his love of AM radio pop on "Sunday Best." On the opener "Aches and Shakes" you get a good mix of harmonious choruses and melody that fans of Crowded House will appreciate. This is light breezy pop with an adult slant on issues, and a slice of Americana flavor, the next song "Different With You" would not sound out of place on a Jayhawks album. What I like about the geek love of "Carl Wilson" is that it doesn't try to emulate his hero's vocal style, it just takes a catchy narrative to piano, mentioning in the lyric "your voice it makes me quiver/ I wish I could have met the younger Wilson". The song "I'm Going" is my favorite here - it's got the dramatic phrasing and guitar chorus that makes it a pop classic. "Myself" has that high energy that recalls his last band The Hazey Janes (move over John Faye and IKE). Then it takes it down a few notches with the ballads and mid-tempo alt country at the end of the album ("Skipping Days" and "Worry Me None") another standout is the title track ("Sunday Best") with a wonderful combination of guitar and banjo after the chorus. This sophomore release showcases Bryan's songwriting as well as his melodic pop talents. The most worthy music I've listened to this Sunday for sure.
Aaron - Powerpoaholic
Sunshine pop, breezy acoustic guitars, high octane melodies and a sweet larynx set up Aussie singer-songwriter Bryan Estepa’s sophomore album quite nicely. Cool folk tunes abound e.g. Aches and Shakes, Different With You, Star and Worry Me None, which will certainly get you humming along. Not that it’s all sweetness and light, there’s enough twang in tracks like I’m Going, Myself, Skipping Days et al, which highlight Estepa’s debt to the alt-country crowd and swing the mood into definite melancholy country territory. But a key milestone is the Beach Boys tribute to the youngest Wilson brother, Carl, an unusual choice in itself as I’ve come across numerous tributes to Brian and even Dennis (Fleetwood Mac’s DW Suite) but kudos to Estepa for giving Carl his props. There are many parallels here with the new Gary Louris album and that can only be a good thing. A mature effort with a deep focus on song craft whilst never veering too far from the country-folk-pop format. What’s not to like?
Kevin Matthews – Power of Pop
Bryan Estepa claims he has always been candid with his affinity for the lonely traveler – the beaten-down sod with only the road to serenade and a knapsack full of memories to lament. From his early demos, the young songwriter has flown the flag for this type of character, painting protagonists as the vulnerable, hopeless romantics through words that kept a sense of indifference.
With his second full length Sunday Best the Sydney local departs from the young-blooded country pop of his first effort All the Bells and Whistles, a record of dueling guitar solos and altitudinal quips that nodded firmly in the direction of Ryan Adams. This time he unashamedly embraces a more modern brand of heartbroken power-pop. Sunday Best buries any optimism found on All the Bells and Whistles and channels those blank faced, downward stress of 20 something awkwardness intro bright, resurgent guitar pop. It’s the kind of upbeat, slightly poetic riffage that induces a wry smile, even if at times it is a little cringe worthy. But Estepa doesn’t kid himself – what helps make this a solidly enjoyable record is the disregard for pretence. If you could sometimes accuse him of being derivative, Estepa is nothing if not wearing his heart on his sleeve.
There are a few moments of Ben Gibbard-esque whimpering that can be slightly frustrating, but of greater frequency arte the whimsical hooks and quality melodies carried by Estepa’s simple compositions and dedication to songwriting. He has an unabashed penchant for the classic pop sound, and its something he delivers with consistency across the eleven tracks of Sunday Best. ‘Carl Wilson’ is a charming, reserved track, whilst the driving joviality of opener ‘Aches and Shakes’ will be instantly committed to memory and subsequently whistles well after the record has ended.
3 & ½ Stars; Paul Donoughue – Time Off Brisbane
Though I still prefer this Aussie popster’s ’06 debut, and his B-bands sense in perfect balance with the rootsy Faces or Gram Parsons references, contemporary powerpop doesn’t really get much better than this.
Springsteen might be an odd reference for a Shindig reader, but I dare you to listen to ‘Different with you’ and ‘I’m going’ without instantly getting hooked on ... and even if you say you’re not, I don’t believe you ... you’re a liar, to quote Zimmy. If The Boss doesn’t do it for you, I suppose “the bearded man on the side” whose voice has been making us all shiver, is a sure bet, eh? Brian Estepa pays his own tribute in ‘Carl Wilson’. Another pair that is sure to keep coming back like a boomerang (pun intended), is the bouncy Jellyfish-like ‘Roses’, along with ‘Skipping days’, his own ‘Fanclub' membership card.
Already a regular all over the air waves down under, it’s up for the rest of the world to catch up.
Goran Obradovic - Shindig Magazine
Australian Bryan Estepa comes into his own with his second solo CD, the excellent Sunday Best, on Pop Boomerang Records. A part of Sydney’s music scene for an extended period, Estepa has been in such popular indie bands Down Under as Swivel and Hazey Jane. During a brief spell between those bands, Estepa stuck his toes in the water as a solo artist long enough to record an EP under the name Adeline in 2003. He fully embraced a solo career in 2006 when he released his first full-length CD, All The Bells and Whistles, which was filled to the brim with catchy pop containing smidges of alt.country. Loved by the critics, the album was a great first step for Estepa to test his solo skills and try to find his footing.
It’s no surprise this album is a stronger effort, with Estepa seeming much more confident and the songs more fully realized than his previous solo work. Self-produced with assistance from Dan Nash, Sunday Best seems to be a culmination of everything Estepa has accomplished and learned so far. Full of breathtaking melodies and inventive arrangements, this pop wunderkind makes one wonder how long it will be before he’s the next big thing. Gorgeous stuff and perfect for those who love the glorious sounds of well done pop music.
Scott – The Rock & Roll Report (20/08/08)
Bryan Estepa is a singer songwriter from Sydney and this is his latest album Sunday Best and it’s a cracker of an album. Brian is a huge fan of The Beach Boys and the influence shows through in his music and his tribute to Carl Wilson on this album that is titled Carl Wilson. I also got You Am I, Charles Jenkins/Ice Cream Hands influences which shined throughout his music. It starts off with Aches And Shakes which is a real pop song that really shows off his influences. It’s a great song that is truly well written, a brilliantly crafted tune that really reminds me off late 90’s and early 20’s aussie pop tunes that were coming out and not the sugar coated mainstream crap that is feed to people. The song Carl Wilson is Brian ballad his tribute, his fan worship to Carl Wilson and it’s a great song written with such joy and harmony. You can’t but help get into the tune and his love for Carl Wilson. Songs like Stars, Worry Me None shows of the softer side of Bryan and his natural ability to write a lovely song that a joy to listen to and how weaves melodies and harmonies together so effortless. Myself is the rock song off the album where it’s a chance to show off the Bryan is also has the knack of writing a rock song as well as the pop songs. Skipping Days is one of favourites off the album. It’s just a really great song with good solid vocals, melodies and harmonies. It’s a song that I could see on radio. It’s one of those rock pop anthem ballad numbers that reminds me so much of You Am I. The guitar playing on this song is excellent and Bryan vocals really shine here and naturally so do his song writing. Second Guess is another favourite with Bryan and his guitar and harpsichord and organ and is a nice solid song that shows off his vocals and his song writing talents. It finishes off with Sunday Best is a pop ballad that truly should be released as a single and released to radio as I could see this doing very well. It’s got solid vocals and good musicianship all round and it’s a finely crafted tune by Bryan. It’s such a lovely song to finish off the album well and yes it’s the one song that really has The Beach Boys influence shine in. Take it from me this one fine album and you know need it now. He a better singer songwriter than most and knows how to write a damn fine pop tune. We should be lucky to have someone as Bryan in our country. We need more singer songwriters like him. A first class pop album that shines.
Chris Parkes – Parks-E Web Zine
