With respect to top notch establishments Big City, A1, Academy Annex, Good Records and Gimme Gimme, on a recent visit to NYC I found myself completely dissatisfied by the city’s saturated digging culture and felt the uncontrollable urge to explore new territory. Having lately developed a fascination with French sleazy funk, Afro, prog and boogie as well as Canadian-bred disco, Montreal seemed an exciting target and only an eleven-hour scenic train ride away. Thanks to comprehensive listings from native  CFCF and Toronto’s Gary Abugan I had the key to a digger’s paradise. I picked some incredible finds while rummaging through Montreal’s wide offering of used record stores and have documented the experience in this region-by-region, store-by-store guide. A highly recommended visit.

PLATEAU

Le Pick-Up, 169 ave. des Pins. One of the most organised and easy to navigate stores in Montreal. They’re obviously big into French music as this was in abundance across many genres. There’s a massive orderly corner of 45s and even a section devoted to “Quebec folk, acid, prog, funk, disco and underground”.

$10 was an expensive tag here so expect generous prices. The owner is a beacon of positive energy and was kind enough to stick around an hour after close so I could browse for longer. No listening station was the only downer but the owner was encouraging of playing through the store’s system. Score: Venus 4 – Cosmos 7”, Beauregard, Violletti & Ste-Claire – En Plein Orgasme LP.

Sonik, 4050 Berri. Cute little corner store that appeared to specialise in garage, punk and new vinyl. Still a reasonable portion of used records.

Beatnick, 3770 St-Denis. Seemed like an OK spot but found it a little hard to get on a roll here (CDs were distracting my peripherals). There was at least a wide rack of soul and they had an expansive selection of French music.

Primitive, 3828 St-Denis. This place was a real trip and understandably well appreciated by local heads and out of towners.

Well organised in that it’s densely broken down into sub genres (Quebec, old school house, Euro disco/Italo, Afrobeat etc) but tightly crammed in shelves and crates that are often hard to browse. You really have to walk around first and map out the store with obscured sections underneath and in all dark corners. For instance the library section was discreet in baskets hanging below the belt from a shelving unit at the back.

Boxes and boxes of categorised 7”s but too much good stuff going on in LP/12” land for me to dive in head first. Massive dollar bins in the doorway including a nice crate of $3 Brazilian records. Could easily spend a day here. Score: Garcons – Diverse LP, Patchwork Party LP, Plastic Bertrand – Tout Petit La Planète 12”.

Paul’s Boutique, 112 Mont-Royal Est. A madhouse hectically packed to the rafters with a moist floor ( ? ). Probably filled with good records but the situation is enough to instantly do your head in. The lunatic owner was talking of grand plans to put a staircase in, open a second level and sort everything so could be worth dropping by in the near future.

Marche du Disque, 793 ave. du Mont-Royal. Second hand bookstore with a mass of unsorted and vaguely categorised cheap discs in the basement. A bit of chore but great for staples (disco, house, techno) at giveaway prices with the opportunity for rarities with patience. Pack gloves and leave your tote at the front before the owner escorts you back to the front door. BYO needle! Score: Ministry – I Wanted To Tell Her 12”, Yves Simon – Au Pays Des Merveilles De Juliet LP (signed by the man himself), Skyy – First Time Around 12”.

Aux 33 Tours, 1379 ave. du Mont-Royal. A relatively new store with used records mixed between new records/reissues. Very fancy and probably a good spot for locals to have in town, but no time for me.

Freeson Rock, 1477 Mont-Royal Est. Was lucky enough to stumble across this treat that was quietly sitting round the corner from where I was staying.

This wasn’t on either lists but from what the owner explained it’s been a specialty prog CD store for 20 years and he’s only recently opened up the floor for vinyl. He mentioned a warehouse of records which I’d imagine he’d gradually empty and replenish the shop with.

More records than the shelves can handle, exploding all over the ground with loads of unsorted boxes under the cabinet. A quality selection of LPs that were fairly priced and not dictated by the internet market. Recommended! Score: Rainer Bloss – Drive Inn 2 LP, John Ozila – Africa Goes Disco LP.

MILE END

Backroom Records, 5912 Saint Urbain. I’m sadly not documenting this outlet from experience as the limited internet evidence suggests it’s only open on Saturdays from midday-6pm. It’s in a really residential area and the entrance is supposedly in the back alley, in a shed on the second floor. The owner is a bit of a local legend who found a lost Velvet Underground acetate at a Chelsea garage sale in 2002 and hocked the ultimate rarity on the bay for $25k. Apparently his wife bakes and sells pastries too!

LITTLE ITALY

Death of Vinyl, 6307 St-Laurent. Operated by two super friendly dudes who were a 12” distributor in the 90s and 00s called Nice Music. A huge store that’s half divided into genres across the board, with huge dollar bins sitting on the other half and walls packed floor to ceiling with their spines facing out.

Pretty overwhelming but a comfortable environment that is nicely spaced out with heaps of room to roam, heightened by the tranquil aroma of burning incense and 5 well equipped listening stations. If you’ve got loads of time then this is a great spot for digging! Very cheap. Again an overflowing corner of 25 cent 45s which I didn’t get a chance to hit.

A lot of stock doesn’t go out on the floor and is listed at their discogs store. They offer discounts on these titles if purchased through the store. They also have an expansive well picked selection of cassettes in case you’re in need of a new car tape. I was surprised to see an excess of second hand stores littered around town that stock books, VHS (or NTSC?) cassettes and old CDs. A friend made the same observation in Toronto: Canada – embracing obsolete formats country wide. Score: Hot RS – House of the Rising Sun LP plus many gap fillers.

FURTHER OUT

Marché aux puces Saint-Michel, 3250 boulevard Crémazie Est. Wild indoor flea market! Kind of a draining experience but must be seen to be believed. Stalls packed so high it’s amazing that they expect people to go through it or even find a way how. A lot of Tetris involved here. Records are randomly scattered about in massive and miniature piles, just be prepared to dig through endless amounts of easy listening comps and 50s vocalists to get to something semi-decent. Its open Fri-Sat-Sun 9am-5pm. I went on Friday and a large portion of the stores were shut. Score: Simply Saucer – She’s A Dog 7” and some random 45 of a Bernard Estardy TV theme.

La Note, 4301 Ontario Est. Small store that’s pretty out of the way. Unless you’re already in the area it’s a big commitment for little reward. That said you never know your luck!