The self-titled EP from Tercel is the Wilmington, North Carolina band’s first record in which they don’t have to share the main billing (they took the unusual step of releasing a split EP with hip hop duo Fuzz Jaxx & CoolOutSessions last year despite only having a couple of one off-singles to their name at that point). They’re a quartet co-led by Savannah Wood and Robin Wood and rounded out by Chris Vinopal (pedal steel, guitar) and Taylor Salvetti (drums); on our clearest glimpse of Tercel yet, we start to be able to see them as big-picture, earnest, pop-forward indie rockers. The exuberant, in-focus guitar work reflects a band who’ve taken cues from their home state’s indie rock history (maybe more Superchunk than Archers of Loaf, but probably both), but all five songs on Tercel shoot for giant, polished choruses (call them heartland rock, Americana, power pop…) that skip right past the 1990s into the following decade. The more electric songs on Tercel (like “Stuck and “Strange Energy”) work because the band are just scuzzy enough to give the tracks the sharper edges they need, although my favorite song on the EP, “Decoder Ring”, cuts the fuzz and chases after an overwhelming, immaculately-building post-alt-country indie rock ball of emotion and melody. And if you’re looking to understand Tercel, that’s probably it.
