When they first got into the scene in 2012, O Terno made 60s inspired-rock music with clever lyricism and catchy melodies.
At that time, it was expected that they could probably follow Los Hermanos’ footsteps and grow to be one of Brazil’s biggest Rock acts, but the band had different plans. Instead of writing easy radio-friendly hits, O Terno went with more subversive melodies and instrumentation that set them apart from a lot of other young bands.
This new direction became even more clear with the release of frontman Tim Bernardes latest solo album, “Recomeçar“, in 2017. The album featured very intimate arrangements based mostly on piano and acoustic guitar. And when O Terno got back in the studio, they went with a full-band approach to that same intimate feeling.
Simply put, their new record <atrás/além> (behind/beyond) is extremely beautiful and well-crafted. The mixing is splendid — the quieter moments sound as if Tim is playing his guitar right in front of you like in “O Bilhete”, while the more bombastic tracks sound as if they’ve been pulled from an epic movie soundtrack like in the album closer “E no Final”.
Lyric-wise, the album ranges from sociopolitical commentary to introspective reflections. Every single song is polished and essential, but a clear highlight is “Volta E Meia”, a collaboration with indie veteran Devendra Banhart and Japanese psych-rock legend Shintaro Sakamoto where the three of them trade verses about romantic feelings and finding themselves being the subject of love songs.
It’s very easy to say that this is an essential 2019 album. Give it a try!
Stream <atrás/além> LP on Bandcamp/Spotify.
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