Dirtybird boss Barclay Crenshaw will take a break from Claude VonStroke to focus on his namesake project.
As far as a substantial swath of the dance music world is concerned, Barclay Crenshaw is Claude VonStroke. That won’t be the case next year. Come 2024, the DJ, producer, and Dirtybird label boss is taking a break from his house and techno moniker to focus on the more bass and hip-hop-inclined project of his namesake.
“As you may have heard I’m going on hiatus as Claude VonStroke next year,” wrote Crenshaw in a social media statement. “I’m so excited to focus on my birth-name project, Barclay Crenshaw. Welcome to any new followers who have come over from the VonStroke or Dirtybird pages. A new bass era begins!“
Based in San Francisco, Crenshaw’s Dirtybird imprint grew closely associated with the wonky style of tech house popularized during the EDM explosion of 2010-2015. The brand came to encompass worldwide tours in addition to Dirtybird Campout festivals on both US coasts, championing music by the likes of Justin Martin, Sacha Robotti, Ardalan, and Walker & Royce.
Crenshaw himself once told me he would trade the label’s success to be a drum and bass artist. Then in 2017, he released a self-titled album under his birth name. While Barclay Crenshaw singles like “Artifacts” featuring Underachievers and “The Baddest” featuring Cam & China bear distinct hip-hop influences, his style is flexible enough to include the bass music he plays during sets at Wakaan Music Festival and Red Rocks Amphitheatre.
When will Crenshaw bring back his highly influential Claude VonStroke project? It’s hard to say. It looks like 2024 will be the year of Barclay Crenshaw, however, giving fans of the project hope that new music and a slate of tour dates could lie on the horizon.
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