The Rheostatics – Here Come the Wolves
The Rheostatics released their first album in 15 years last September on Six Shooter Records, and it’s a masterpiece of Canadian art that should be included in any serious Canadian music fan’s collection. By the third track, I was hooked on ...
John Borra – Blue Wine
Alt-country troubadour and stalwart of Toronto’s music scene John Borra (Rattlesnake Choir, Change of Heart, A Neon Rome) is set to release his first solo album in nearly 20 years on Jan. 31. Unfortunately, I’ve only ever seen John perform ...
Babineau-Chartrand: Un Beau P’tit Son
Alexis Chartrand and Nicolas Babineau have so much music in them that they pretty much had no choice but to produce a new CD hot on the heels of their 2017 tour de force, Gigues à 2 Faces. This year’s ...
Wide Mouth Mason – I Wanna Go With You: New ...
Deciduously speaking, when our cellular apprehensions fall into a preoccupation with the approach of winter, the inner sap of our collective spirit traditionally goes to ground, seeking the comfort of the roots, and we divest ourselves of our exterior colours ...
Leonard Cohen – Thanks for the Dance
Mike Regenstreif has written about folk music since the 1970s for Sing Out, the Montreal Gazette and other outlets. He reviews new albums on his blog at frfb.blogspot.com. We’re super thrilled that he shared with us his review of the ...
É.T.É. – Le Boire Des Minuits
I recently revisited this CD, one of the loveliest things I received in the last year. Le Boire Des Minuits (the midnight drink) is definitely worth repeated listening. É.T.É. is a trio of young people from Québec: Élisabeth Moquin (fiddle, ...
Dave Gunning – Up Against the Sky (vinyl)
While I’d heard of award-winning Canadian folk singer-songwriter Dave Gunning, I’d yet to see him live. Thankfully, a trip to the 2017 Kingsville Folk Music Festival in Kingsville, ON would make things right. My wife and I were fortunate enough ...
Emily Triggs – Middletown
“All I need is a little fire,” sings Alberta songwriter Emily Triggs in the opening line of her sophomore solo release, Middletown. And that’s exactly what she delivers in this multi-layered ten-song collection of musings about love, longing, and loss. ...
Janet Bates – It is Here I Leave You, Dragon
Photo by Lisa Novak. This is a voice you feel like you’ve known forever. Like a clear mountain river running unto the sea, it surrounds and envelops you as you bathe in its warm sunshine. This is the voice of ...
Al Qahwa – Cairo Moon
Cairo Moon is the newest disc showcasing the many vivacious talents of Toronto’s modern Middle Eastern quartet Al Qahwa. With this sophomore record the four core members bring their multi-channelled talents and Greek/Iranian/Egyptian/Canadian heritages back together to envision an exotic ...