Esser - Braveface
Having drummed for disbanded trash rock outfit Ladyfuzz and spent several years touring holiday camps with a covers band, Ben Esser is well versed in all kinds of musical practices. At just 23 years of age, he's now embarking upon a solo career that looks set to take him right to the forefront of the crowded British pop scene.
Talking to Clickmusic.com, Esser explained how he's not at all ashamed of being a pop musician. "I don't like elitism. Pop music can be fascinating, the way it makes you feel, and the way it can capture a moment in time," he explained. With exactly the right attitude and a rapidly expanding online following, things are looking pretty good for the impressively bequiffed Essex boy.
Braveface is a melting pot of ideas and musical styles guaranteed to see beatnicks, teeny boppers and skinheads united on the dancefloor; influences as varied as ska, hip-hop and electro give Esser an intriguing aura and the ability to reach every inch of your anatomical dancing equipment.
Opening with a strange nod to classic call-and-response blues, Leaving Town is a monstrous mash-up of guitars that growl, beats that drive and vocal melodies that penetrate the consciousness ready to let in everything that follows. Title track Braveface is a steadier stroll in the summer sunshine with a bright and encouraging message to match.
With programmed drumbeats and bitesize chunks of synth madness, Headlock is the first taste of Esser's electro-infused blend. Another highly infectious number, the messy arrangements provide a perfect contrasting backdrop to the Chelmsford lad's straight-talking speaksong; just imagine a pre art school Graham Coxon or Lily Allen with a bigger pair of bollocks.
The cheeky Satisfied is an ode to the perils of an young man trying to please women. With strong meditaranean flavours and yet another knockout hook, it's an unexpected highlight that leads seamlessly into the bleeping, hissing, thud and bump of stylish single Work It Out. Possibly the best remix fodder of the year so far, it's a must-listen.
Refusing to tail off in true pop style, the variety just keeps expanding; I Love You is Esser's take on romance and hearbreak. It's equally as fresh-sounding and danceable as the rest of the CD and luckily avoids verging anywhere near cheesy.
Real Life features some of the sweetest vocal melodies to this point and has a spaced-out ethereal quality that adds depth and breathing space that is perhaps lacking in some of the full-on arrangements of other tracks. The singer's dreamy falsetto here is gorgeously reminiscent of early Blur.
Sporting a haircut that's so bad it might just catch on, Esser is a sharply dressed troubadour happily ensconced between fashion and music. Braveface is a pure, home grown labour of love with an appeal as long-lasting as it is fresh. It's terribly rare that a pop album with such a simultaneously thought-through and experimental backbone comes along; it's damn near impossible to fault.
Rating: 5/5
Skip To: Real Life
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