Claude VonStroke

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.