O TERNO -

What to do when the old paradigms stop working? How to act when uncertainty takes over? These questions are nothing new for Tim Bernardes, songwriter and leader of O Terno, the São Paulo outfit that made a name for itself with early records marked by a playful, ironic take on psychedelic rock. His solo album "Recomeçar", a refined collection of reflections with a chamber-music touch, had already paved the way for a new expressive rebirth on the part of the trio's frontman, who found himself navigating a period of intense emotional upheaval and fresh challenges to work through.

In keeping with the thoughtful, markedly sensitive spirit of that record from two years ago, "" is its expanded, full-band deepening, giving complete shape to a transition that had already been hinted at in the past and is now fully realized. By smoothing out the rock tensions in favor of a closer connection to the glorious MPB tradition, the album directly expresses the new awareness Bernardes has gained, the ambiguities inherent in reaching adulthood, through a play of oppositions and dichotomies that necessarily speak a completely different language, far more articulate and nuanced.

Still wrapped in that pervasive rétro aura that this time leads them to measure their sound against heavyweights of 1970s Brazilian music and the previous decade's Anglo-American pop (from Jorge Ben to the Kinks, by way of Beatles, Gilberto Gil and Secos & Molhados), O Terno unfurl an array of bittersweet melodies marked by elegant, thoroughly refined arrangements, crafted with an ear that blends jazz, chamber pop, orchestral leanings and soul feeling all under one roof.

Even before the songwriting (never flattened into the crude standards of contemporary balladry), it's really the sonic dimension that stands out most in the project's alchemy — the element that carries the whole operation from existential diary to parable about growth and feeling, with all the hesitations and extremes that this can entail. The behind and the beyond, past and future poised to collide and forge the present, tinting it with anxiety and fresh momentum, tools to confront inner unease and the crisis surrounding it.

It may not have been the band's intention, but this slice of life carries within it a deep romanticism, one that illuminates every passage, every pause, with a light that's vivid and clear, at times flickering but never wavering in intensity. Whether playing with (relative) restraint on the passionate chamber-pop cut "Eu vou" (with Bernardes's crooning edging toward Caetano Veloso territory), tapping into the modes of folk song ("Pra sempre será", "Passado/Futuro"), or embracing more lavish, sophisticated moods (a loungey "Volta e meia", punctuated by vocal contributions from Shintaro Sakamoto and Devendra Banhart), the tone never slips into a distant, detached narration — if anything, it rewards the project's strong lyrical bent and the deep commitment of the elements at play, which snuffs out any trace of easy sentimentality.

In this acquisition of new awareness, a shift into another phase of their career, the O Terno outfit nail the right transition, taking on an unabashedly classic aesthetic that still manages to translate into the present with real personality. It will be interesting to see where further experiences take Bernardes and co.'s inspiration next.

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26/09/2019