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Socalled with Katie Moore
Temple B'Nai Tikvah
Monday, October 17 - Monday, October 17

More in: R&B / Hip hop

Heinrich the gnome sports a cape, shield, horned helmet and raised sword. He has travelled around the world atop Socalled ringleader Josh Dolgin’s synthesizer ever since Dolgin stole him from the backstage of a German venue. But the Montreal musician and producer says the little Viking has been up to some new antics lately.

“He started to take the mic and rock out on some tunes,” Dolgin says, laughing. “That was totally him doing that. And we encouraged it because he’s actually very talented.”

The gnome, who recently had his arm ripped off by a “drunk guy in a toga at a frosh week party in Ottawa,” isn’t the only contributor to Dolgin’s quirky musical persona. Maroon pajamas were Dolgin’s costume for most of his sets at this year’s Calgary Folk Music Festival. The music video for his song “You Are Never Alone” — which has been viewed over 2.5 million times since its 2006 release — easily rivals Grizzly Bear’s “Two Weeks” for the most nonsensical in recent memory.

His latest record, Sleepover, only further exemplifies his signature eccentricity. Although Dolgin’s roots in klezmer and hip-hop are still obvious, genres such as pop, disco, folk, soul and funk somehow weave themselves into the album. The song “Springhill Mining Disaster,” which he says serves as a reprieve from the beats and special effects of the rest of the tracks, is a traditional sea shanty inspired by an old CBC singalong record.

“Well, basically, I can do whatever I want,” he says. “On this record, every song is different because, what the hell, life is short. If you like a tune, slap it on there.”

Musical legends such as Roxanne Shanté, Chilly Gonzales and the Mighty Sparrow all contributed to Sleepover, creating a My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy-like experience. But Dolgin says that translating all of that collaboration into a live show featuring five musicians has proved to be a challenge. Many of the tracks needed to be sonically filled with programming and loops, and Dolgin had to learn a number of sections sung by other musicians.

“It was a learning experience, that’s for sure,” he says. “When I made it, I didn’t think about that. I should have probably, but when I started out making the record I thought I was going to make something way simpler, with fewer voices and something a bit more streamlined. But I kept failing and inviting all sorts of cool people to be on the record.”

After experiencing some disappointment that the three years he had spent on Sleepover didn’t sound the same onstage, he says he realized that the fundamental difference between the live show and studio recording needs to be considered. In his eyes, Sleepover was a refined jewel of sorts. But the live show, which he’s had plenty of time to experiment with, holds just as much entertainment value and a different kind of energy.

The more “normal” songs that were recorded for Sleepover, such as “Kid Again” and “Beautiful,” may mark a new direction of sorts for Dolgin. He acknowledges that the record was an interesting experiment, and that he’ll likely keep writing music in the same vein. But nothing really appears to be off limits for the musician.

“The boundaries between old and new and technology and live instruments has really become invisible,” he says. “It just becomes a song. You sort of stop thinking about where it all comes from and how it all happens.”