Claude VonStroke

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Founder of San Francisco's Dirtybird label, whose bouncy, bass-heavy take on tech house and 'Who's Afraid of Detroit?' shaped a whole corner of club culture.

Claude VonStroke is the DJ and producer alias of Barclay Crenshaw, who grew up around Detroit before settling in San Francisco. He started Dirtybird there in the mid-2000s, and the label became home to a loose crew of producers who shared his taste for playful, low-end-driven house.

His own records lean on rubbery basslines, cartoonish vocal snippets and odd sound effects. "The Whistler" and "Deep Throat" became club staples, and he released full-length albums including Beware of the Bird and Bird Brain. He has also recorded under his own name, Barclay Crenshaw, for slower, hip-hop-leaning material.