Jonathan Toubin brings his ultra-rare 45s to Montreal

Crate-digger extraordinaire Jonathan Toubin

New York DJ and famed 45 crate-digger Jonathan Toubin returns to Montreal this Saturday for  Soul Clap & Dance Off at Divan Orange. Toubin will be spinning long-forgotten ’60s soul and boogaloo classics and presiding over a dance contest along with local celebrity judges.

His ever-growing collection of 45s — which includes a fair bit of Quebec content he’s picked up here during previous visits — consists of songs so rare, he’s been given the title of “Unshazamable,” meaning even the all-knowing music IDing app can’t identify his golden oldies.

Although he won’t be breaking out the local stuff for this Saturday’s soul-centric event, he actually assembled a mostly French-language mix called Polyglot Discotheque, which you can listen to here.

Toubin sustained potentially life-threatening injuries in a terrifying incident late last year, when he was hit by a taxi that drove into the hotel he was staying at in Portland, Oregon. Thankfully, Toubin says his health has “improved beyond everyone’s expectations,” and he hopes to be back to normal by the end of the year.

I spoke to Toubin about Soul Clap, his self-professed “unfashionable” collection, crossing the border, cosplaying and Shazam. Also, Toubin is on the lookout for any 45s from ’60s Montreal rockers the Haunted, so if you have one gathering dust, get in touch with us.

Erik Leijon: How many 45s will you be bringing to Montreal?
Jonathan Toubin: I always have issues at the border. Last time I went up to Montreal, they held me for a long time because they thought I was selling commercial goods. I tried explaining to them that I was a DJ and to sell my records would be like a guitarist selling his guitar, but that time I brought a couple hundred. For the last time I went out of town, I brought one little box that holds 80 records — a tiny square, seven by seven by seven inches or so — and it got me through the night.

EL: Are you surprised with how well people have taken to the music you play?
JT: I always figured this: the thing with capitalism is that sometimes they try to sell you these products, then immediately tell you it’s not cool and you need to throw it away and buy another thing. But really good things that are of a high-quality last a long time. A lot of the music I play hasn’t even had its time in North America — most of the records I play were even unknown in their time — and they’re so good, they’ve been waiting for their day to be appreciated and be presented in the right way. I didn’t expect it to move as quickly as it did, and I didn’t have ambitions for it, but I always assumed that at some point, good stuff comes around and people get into it. It’s like up where you are, with that great Quebec-y garage.

EL: Any recommendations?
JT: There’s one band called les Lutins — they have some good ones. Les Hou-Lops, too. And I got a really good one by Karo, called “Dans le ventre d’une énorme baleine,” although the other records I have by her aren’t as cool. I recently got one by a band called Ugly Ducklings, but they sing in English [and are from Toronto]. I’ve bought a number of French records there, too, really kooky ones. I really like shopping in Montreal: they don’t have the American stuff, I want but they have good garage records.

EL: How do the Montreal crowds compare to your weekly New York crowds?
JT: It’s different in every town, but Montreal has always been great. I did Pop Montreal in 2009, and it was really off the hook, and then I did a Sunday one last year, and it actually turned out great. We had great dancers, and Bloodshot Bill was a judge, and the Breastfeeders, too. Montreal definitely has it more than most cities.

EL: How does the music you play at Soul Clap compare to what you’re doing in New York these days?
JT: The Shakin’ All Over nights are mostly early rock ’n’ roll, rhythm and blues, and I do it every week, so I change it up a lot and play stuff I don’t know yet. It’s a lot of wild old American raw music. Soul Clap is more ’60s soul and boogaloo, and funk before it was funk. It’s blacker and funkier.

EL: Do people often dress up in period costumes for your parties?
JT: In some towns, when people go to parties with older music, they like to think they’re in a period piece, or they’re part of a subculture that likes to dress up. In New York, some people will dress up, but it doesn’t matter either way, which I love. The point of the music I play is I’m trying to find songs that are timeless and that apply to today even if they’re old, so I’m not looking for the party to look like Hairspray. I want your average, intelligent curious music lover to come out and dance and listen to awesome music they don’t know yet. Wear whatever it is you usually wear, basically.

EL: Are you well versed in the music IDing app Shazam?
JT: I was told by another DJ last week that my stuff is “unshazamable.” I want people to learn about music, so it’s great, but it’s weird to see a bunch of dudes holding their phones up, shazaming you. It’s fine with me if they want to take pictures and learn, but sometimes I think they would be better off dancing and talking to people. ■

Soul Clap & Dance Off with Jonathan Toubin & friends goes down at Divan Orange (4234 St-Laurent) on Saturday, Aug. 25, 10 p.m., $10