Crack

Crack first saw Claude VonStroke in the underbelly of a Cardiff hotel called Tafod, with around 60 people in 2006.

An unassuming little venue, this small house and techno night, named Industrial Circus, brought new names to the city’s small scene and presented new sounds to the committed audience.

Every artist needs a defining moment in his or her career, and instead of a YouTube video or a gimmick, Claude’s was most definitely a musical offering in the double release of The Whistler and Who’s Afraid Of Detroit in 2005. These two records went on to define and cement his place in dance music’s underground glitterati. Both records blasted out this intimate little Cardiff venue and went home in everyone’s head that night. They have gone on to become bonafide tech-house classics, and defining that musical period for many dance music fans.

Raised in the suburbs of Detroit, but based in San Francisco, Claude VonStroke’s (real name Barclay Crenshaw) gradual rise to the top has given him almost statesmanlike aura in the scene. This coupled with the fact he started producing records at a late age, adds to the feeling that he is a scene veteran, when perhaps he’s more of a newbie than people would think.

Claude’s subsequent success can be largely attributed to the Dirtybird record label he founded and the quality roster of artists he has brought on in this time. The likes of Justin and Christian Martin, J Phlip, Worthy, Catz’n’Dogz, Tim Green, Style of Eye and Julio Bashmore have all released on the label and in the process, created a body of work that has made Dirtybird one of the most successful house music imprints in the world.

From soaring tech-house, to wobbly basslines and a deep-rooted sense of fun, Dirtybird has become a revered name for dance music fans. Claude VonStroke epitomizes this brand. A large character in both in personality and physical form, and a sense of humour large enough to carry this big bird of a label, his time with Crack is as jovial and entertaining as his meandering and bouncing sets.

From Fabric one week, to Bloc headlining appearance the next, Calude’s name has come to stand for one of the most entertaining and reliable in dance music. Two artist albums (a moderately prolific output for a producer/DJ) in Beware Of The Bird and Birdbrain, have showcased him as one of the hardest working producers in the game. Couple this with an encyclopedic music knowledge of most notably and surprisingly Bristol drum’n’bass, this city has left an indelible mark on Claude and means he always looks forward to his time in this part of the world.

You started making music at quite a late age? How come it all started quite late for you?

That’s not really true. I started releasing music a little bit late in my early thirties but I’ve been making music since I was 11. I wrote my first original composition for cello when I was nine or 10. I probably wrote my first rap beats at 12.

What was your inspiration for getting into production? Were you a DJ first before you started making records?

I was a radio DJ in both high school and college, but that wasn’t the same kind of DJ as a DJ who 'mixes'. That was more of a traditional style DJ experience where I played tracks and talked in the breaks. That said; I was always doing production. I saved up to buy a sampler when I was 15 or 16 and it had a total of eight seconds mono sampling and it cost me $2500 used!! Imagine that. The reason it took me so long to release records was because I never thought it was a possible career choice. The schools I attended were all like Ivy League kids trying to be bankers, doctors and lawyers. Music producer wasn’t really considered acareer path and so it took me a long time to realise I was actually good enough and it was actually a viable career choice.

The Dirtybird sound is a big hybrid of many styles, but the jackin-house style bass on the Dirtybird records seem to be a prominent feature that unites a number of other fans. Why do you think the Dirtybird imprint had such a crossover appeal?

It’s hard to say because I just sign music I play and music I like. Our sound is not trying to be like anything else. We have our own thing here and we aren’t trying to copy anyone. A lot of labels are purveyors of good music but they aren’t doing anything original, we try our best to be original. Hopefully people are hearing that fresh spirit.

You’ve taken on a new selection of producers of late, such as Bristol’s Julio Bashmore and J Phlip. You are also a regular at Just Jack parties. You seem to have a soft spot for this city?

I’ve had a long-term love affair with Bristol. It started back in the days of Ed Rush and Optical and all the amazing drum ‘n’ bass producers who came out of there. Before I visited there, it seemed as if Bristol was this place in outer space. The truth is that it is very much like the cities in the Midwest where I grew up; it’s a little bit rough around the edges and often misunderstood. There is something in the water in Bristol that really meshes with me and the music I like.

Whose productions are currently making you salivate?

I always get asked this question and really it’s always just individual songs. I rarely find a person who just kills it for me across the board. People I think who are hot right now would be Kink, Ramadanman, Julio Bashmore, and Justin Martin as always...the best.

Who was the last DJ you saw that made you salivate?

Ramadanman in Bristol. I was more than a bit surprised.

Can you tell us a bit about the forthcoming Dirtybird remix album?

It’s a ‘best of’ remix package from me. Over the years I’ve done a lot of remixes, and in general, my goal is to totally re-make the original track. I am never one to simply re-do the beats, I always want to make a totally new sound with some elements from the original track inside. So I felt that a remix album would be as good to release as a real album. It was the same amount of work.

You have quite an original name. Where did you dream up ‘ClaudeVon Stroke’ and do you think a pseudonym is the way to go?

It was always a joke. I thought it up as a joke and it developed naturally. People started calling me it after someone put it as my name on a birthday party poster, which I was DJ’ing for.

In your records you clearly fuse a good sense of music with a good sense of fun? The sample you use on the The Capacitron with Christian Martin is a good example. Did you always set out to make music with a slightly humorous edge?

That is a skit we made from scratch. Some of the sound effects are samples, but the whole thing is original. The voice is actually Chris. It was a joke about the rants I go on about everyone else on Dirtybird. I like to say that I am busting my butt in the office and everyone else is at home watching hip-hop videos eating submarine sandwiches and having sex with their various girlfriends. And yes, we love to have fun. It’s all about fun - right?

What else do you listen too in your spare time? What are your Desert Island Discs?

I like everything from Zeppelin to Nina Simone to Shadow to Das Racist to Aaron Copleand to new stuff like Tyler The Creator. It’s too hard to peg down a single thing.

You are a consistent user of innovative samples? Where do you dig?

I don’t dig so much, except for my massive D’n’B vinyl collection. I create with the mic mostly.

You are a producer who moved to Berlin and then moved away again, this is out of sync with many other producers at the moment. What was it about Berlin that meant you didn’t stay?

It is a misconception that we ‘moved’ there. My family and I took a three-month vacation to live in Berlin almost three years ago. Somehow people thought I was moving there permanently, but it was only a vacation. I live in the Bay Area and that hasn’t changed in 14 years. I think it’s an advantage for us to be outside of the system. Berlin is like the epicentre of dance music right now and we live completely outside of that. It’s a good place to be. Also, isn’t it like -4 degrees there right now? Hmm, scarves and moonboots or sitting next to my swimming pool in the Bay? Easy choice.

What is your favourite place to play and why?

I can’t really say as it’s like apples to oranges to bananas. Each place has various charms.

When are you going to be too old for this shit? We take it you won’t be passing on the baton anytime soon?

I may have started late but I can’t imagine doing anything else. I don’t see why I should quit until no one wants to hear it anymore. That is a good time to quit and maybe not even then if I still have something to say. Music is subjective and it’s not about money. It either makes you happy to do music or it doesn’t… and it makes me happy.

What does the future hold for Dirtybird? You are probably one of the biggest house labels on the planet. Where do you go from here?

I really appreciate that kind of compliment but it also makes me worry. If we are one of the biggest house labels on the planet then house music is in serious trouble!! Hehe. We will keep releasing music and trying to push boundaries.

Who is the heir to the Dirtybird crown?

Justin Martin to be sure. He will have an album soon (fingers crossed) and he’s got a few years to go before he’s my age, so I think he’ll be going a while after I’m done. But who knows?

Crack’s editor was once in a bit of a way in Fabric being looked after by one of his esteemed colleagues, when he asked you if you’d sourced the monkey noises on your track, Chimps, from Africa? Can you confirm whether or not this is true?

Hehe, no, its not as they’re from the San Diego Zoo (i’m sure by way of Africa).

Was Beware Of The Bird a reference to a really aggressive woman you met, or a warning of the dangers of Bird flu?

I like your ideas better than the truth. The truth is completely random.

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DOWNLOAD THE CLAUDE VONSTROKE MIX HERE

http://www.myspace.com/claudevonstroke

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