A crafty English-Canadian singer/songwriter of elegance and wit, John Southworth has consistently painted the corners of smart pop eccentricity since arriving on the Toronto scene in the late '90s. With a penchant for thematic projects with a literate bent, Southworth's shapeshifting music ranges from the quirky indie pop of releases like 2000's Banff Springs Transylvania and 2004's Yosemite to 2012's lush, orchestral Easterween and the understated jazz and folk of his 2014 masterwork double-LP Niagara. A former film student who directs all of his own videos and published an obscure children's book in Japan, Southworth has continued to explore and refine his songs on 2019's subtle Miracle in the Night and the comprehensive 2021 project Rialto which included an album, podcast, novella, and theatrical live show.