Nearly three years in the making, Shedding Skin, the new six-song EP by Ajax, ON-based The Rockin’ Krolik (a.k.a. J.F. Perotin) is a raw examination of past relationships, personal growth, loss of loved ones, and addiction. It’s the kind of album you make when you’ve turned 52, as Perotin did this year, and you have some of the hard-earned wisdom and maturity to formulate something deeply meaningful – and relatable.

“I wrote songs letting go of filters, self-judgment, Imposter Syndrome, and all that BS,” Perotin says of Shedding Skin, which he began writing back in 2022.

With its mellow rockin’ groove, “W.Y.K.Y.K.” (“When You Know, You Know”) pays tribute to emotional intelligence and listening to one’s gut to get the right answers. “In short, it’s being tuned in to the energy of the universe and what you perceive when interacting with people – it’s all magnetism,” Perotin muses. “Ebbs and flows, tension and release.” And then the song brings in the strings for an epic, purifying ending.