Terrible thing to say about a punk icon I know but John Borra really has matured like a fine wine. Toronto singer/songwriter Borra releases Blue Wine, his first solo album since 2002, which finds the long-time pillar of the city's alternative music scene shifting back to recording under his own name after three albums with his band Rattlesnake Choir. The album's 11 tracks show strong form with his writing and performing powers; on one hand, it’s exactly the kind of album you’d expect from one of the most influential figures within Toronto’s roots-rock scene – raw, melodic, and bursting with heart and soul. On the other hand, Blue Wine displays maturity and lyrical sophistication of an experienced artist. 

Quebecoids Scattered Clouds gets all official languages with us on this most recent release.“Lapolitique, concours pseudo-érotique, “is the new single off fresh album, the scarily titled Take AwayYour Summer out on Boiled Records. Inspired by the dichotomous terrain of their hometown of Hull, Québec, the experimental outfit of Philippe Charbonneau and Jamie Kronick’s second album is a futuristic broken romance set amidst a burning dystopian landscape. Shot and edited by Patrick Lozinsky during amateur wrestling event Lutte 07 in Gatineau, the restrained, hypno-funk plod of “La politique” is belied by the reckless battle at play in the bright lights of the ring.

“‘La politique, concours pseudo-érotique’ is about the current political climate, how there’s a growing sense of powerlessness in democracy and how world politics seem to play out like a theatre show,” says the band. “The video is a metaphorical exploration of amateur wrestling entertainment and how it is analogous to the satirical and barbaric presentation of the modern day political stage.”