Marci – the project of TOPS’ Marta Cikojevic – presents “Terminal,” the newest single from her forthcoming debut self-titled album, out August 5th on Arbutus Records, alongside a chic video directed by Christina Bryson. Like previous singles “Entertainment” and “Immaterial Girl,” “Terminal” was produced by Cikojevic’s TOPS bandmate David Carriere. Carrierre and Cikojevic approached Marci with the idea that they wanted to craft hits—songs that were catchy and danceable while still being emotionally honest and down-to-earth. “Into the evening with my demons, gonna have a ball // I gotta move into the groove,”  Cikojevic intones in her signature velvety vocals. Of the track, Cikojevic says, “Terminal is my joke vapid lingo about being dead because something is soooo cool. The song is about how music can be so overwhelmingly good it allows you to fully escape. David and I wrote the seed of this song while we were pregaming for a party that turned out to be shit.”

Marci is about finding catharsis in all its forms, whether it be through a crying session behind closed doors or the euphoria that hits when you hear your favorite song on the radio. The confidence across Marci belies the fact that Cikojevic has never formally written songs before, though she’s had a music-filled childhood. Eventually she would make her way to Toronto where she played in several groups before joining TOPS as a keyboardist in 2017. When she decided to make a solo record, it was a given that she’d work with Carriere. Rounding out the band on Marci are Mitch Davis, Rene Wilson, Austin Tufts (Braids) on drums, and Chloé Soldevila (Anemone), Adam Byczkowski (Better Person) and Jane Penny (TOPS) on backing vocals. A guileless collection of synth pop songs that brim with unabashed sincerity, Cikojevic’s songs hover in the nebulous galaxy between analog and digital, often both in one song.